


Talking to the Moon

by castielvibes



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alastair (Supernatural) Being an Asshole, Alpha Alastair (Supernatural), Alpha Castiel (Supernatural), Alpha Castiel/Omega Dean Winchester, Alpha Sam Winchester, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe, Anal Sex, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, BAMF Castiel (Supernatural), Beta Balthazar (Supernatural), Beta Benny Lafitte, Beta Billie, Beta Charlie Bradbury, Beta Jo Harvelle, Beta Jody Mills, Castiel and Dean Winchester Need to Use Their Words, Castiel runs the pack, Castiel/Dean Winchester First Kiss, Characters turn into wolves, Dean Winchester Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Dean Winchester Has a Crush on Castiel, Dean has a lot of slick, Dean is a mess, Domestic Castiel/Dean Winchester, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Hurt Dean Winchester, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Jealous Castiel (Supernatural), Jealous Dean Winchester, Knotting, Knotting Dildos, M/M, Mating, Mating Bites, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Omega Anna Milton, Omega Dean Winchester, Omega Donna Hanscum, Omega Jessica Moore, Omega Trafficking, POV Castiel (Supernatural), POV Dean Winchester, POV Third Person, Protective Castiel (Supernatural), Protective Dean Winchester, Scenting, Scents & Smells, Shameless Smut, Slow Build, Slow Build Castiel/Dean Winchester, Slow Burn, Top Castiel/Bottom Dean Winchester, Wolf Pack
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-12
Updated: 2019-09-09
Packaged: 2020-06-27 05:45:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 37,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19784464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/castielvibes/pseuds/castielvibes
Summary: Dean, a coveted and abused Omega, finds himself thrust on to a new path. One where, in search for his own stability and his brother Sam, he's introduced to an instinctual itch that takes every ounce of self control not to scratch.xA WIP that will be updated every Tuesday and Friday!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [supernaturaI](https://archiveofourown.org/users/supernaturaI/gifts), [NettieStein13](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NettieStein13/gifts), [JeffyGermaine](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JeffyGermaine/gifts).



> Hello! So, I've definitely been MIA for who knows how long, but I finally got a new computer! This fic has been a work in progress for over a month now and with the help of my amazing beta @JeffyGermaine, we've managed to get pretty far on it! I'm only going to post a couple of chapters for now until I get your feedback on it, though I have more in store :) Please feel free to comment and let me know what you all think!! 
> 
> A warning ahead of time, there are going to be implied rape/non-con elements in this story along with past physical and sexual abuse. I want to put a disclaimer that I’ve never experienced sexual abuse myself, so it may not be accurate at times but I will try my best to make it as authentic as I can. Each chapter will have a trigger warning posted beforehand. If I forget one, please let me know so I can fix it right away. 
> 
> The lore in this story is original! I’m excited to share this brand new world with you all and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
> 
> Please enjoy and don’t forget to leave feedback. I love reading your comments! xx

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _In situations of captivity the perpetrator becomes the most powerful person in the life of the victim, and the psychology of the victim is shaped by the actions and beliefs of the perpetrator._  
>  — Judith Lewis Herman

Dean looked around the dimly lit cabin slowly— a lone lantern the only light source, hanging in the center of the ceiling— and swiped his tongue across his cracked lips as he kept his bare back pinned to the frozen brick wall. His arms stayed around his knees, his chin resting on them, while keeping his eyes trained on the large wooden door about five feet away from him. Not that it mattered, if the shackle around his right ankle had anything to say about it. He couldn’t remember how many cycles had passed since he had arrived and been trapped in this horrible Alpha camp. 

He glanced up to the only window that existed in the tiny cabin that was by the doorway; looking to see if his friend, Moon, was back yet... but saw nothing except the blackness of the night sky. He had promised Sam that he’d be back before dawn. That he was just going to shoot a deer or a rabbit; a milk run, if _that_. His eyes fell to the wall on his right and he numbly fingered the engraved tally marks he’d made with a random nail, tracing them up and down absentmindedly.

That had been many moons ago.

When he had first gotten there, the brick wall was bare. Now, many seasons later, the tally marks scattered across the bricks as much as the stars did the night sky. He looked back at the door and sighed deeply, his breath coming out as a soft, almost translucent white cloud. He knew the first snow of winter was nearing. The water was getting colder, the air becoming nippier. It was days away, a week at most and from the feeling in the air... this would be the worst winter they’d had in a while. He could feel it in his bones. 

It was the first night of Spring when Dean left Sam. He felt his eyes burn, knowing that if he were hydrated enough, there would be tears escaping him by now. After Mary had died giving birth to Sam, Dean was all he had left. John was long gone before Mary even knew she was expecting. The moment Dean had presented as Omega, John wanted to leave him and take Mary somewhere else. His mother didn’t leave though. She stayed with him and John left anyways. Needless to say, it was a miracle Mary didn’t die before the birth of Sam. Without her mate, she became frail and deathly pale throughout her pregnancy. It was even _more_ of a miracle that Sam was born a healthy pup.

But now that healthy pup— who was he kidding? Sam was almost seventeen before Dean had left— was alone. Dean had no idea if Sam was even alive at this point, or if he had ran off from the den looking for Dean. He knew that Sam was smart and could hunt for himself. Besides, their den had more than enough food for the winter as is. He knew if Sam stayed put and let the winter blow over, he would have a better chance of surviving than if he were to abandon the den to look for Dean. Dean just hoped that Sam was wise enough to not search for him until the first moon of spring appeared. Dean exhaled deeply and looked back at the door.

Abruptly, a scent hit his nose, causing it to scrunch as the smell of spoiled meat and ash filled his senses. He recognized who it was and instinctively curled in on himself even more. The wooden door swung open with a loud slamming noise as it hit a brick wall and Dean’s breath caught in his throat. 

“Well, hello my precious Omega,” a nasally voice rang out in the air as Alastair came into view. Dean looked down at the rotting floor made of wood, not wanting to make eye contact with the Alpha. He decided to stare at Alastair’s boots instead, his inner self agreeing that that was easier to focus on than the sickly pale face of his captor. Well, one of them, anyways. Alastair squatted down and gripped Dean’s chin harshly with his bony fingers, forcing the Omega to look up at him. A smarmy smile spread across his face, showing his yellowing crooked teeth.

“Much better. Wanna see those pretty little eyes of yours.” Alastair said, letting the pad of his thumb rub against Dean’s lower lip. Dean had to fight every urge in his body to not bite it off. He gritted his teeth, his eyes connecting with Alastair’s dull blue ones. He watched as the Alpha sniffed deeply, his smile turning into a crooked grin. “Your scent is a lot sweeter than normal. ‘Spose to mean your heat is coming soon, eh?” he asked with a twinkle in his eyes.

Dean fought the urge not to shiver. “Y-Yes.” he whispered quietly, looking down and away from him. He hoped he came across as meek and shy, but the truth was he didn’t want to see the spark in the Alpha’s eyes. It made his stomach churn.

“Well, that’ll be a fun one won’t it?” Alastair purred before standing up, letting Dean’s chin go. “Brought ya the leftovers of the lunch today.” he said, grabbing the small pouch that was clipped to his belt. He dropped it on the floor and Dean stared at it dully. He would rather starve than be roofied by him, knowing that that was the Alpha’s M/O. However, Dean still nodded his head in thanks, daring to look at the Alpha this time.

“Thank you. . . Alpha,” he murmured, gingerly, and grabbed the bag. Willing his hands not to shake. Alastair nodded and reached out, petting Dean’s head. Dean opened the bag and sniffed it, looking for anything to smell off at all. He heard Alastair chuckle.

“Don’t worry, Omega,” he said as he walked back towards the door. “I didn’t roofie it this time. Won’t do us any good if we have a drugged up Omega the night before we move.” 

Right. Tomorrow was moving day for the ring. A month prior, Alastair and Azazel— his brother who was also one of the Alphas in charge of the Omega ring— had found out there was a Beta who had been a spy. She had used some secret scent blend to make herself appear as an Omega, gathering information of where the ring was and how many Omegas were trapped in here. Dean hadn’t seen her, but heard her walking by multiple times throughout the night. She had made a tunnel and was sneaking Omegas out one by one, freeing at least three before Alastair caught on. They had a public execution the following day, making sure all the Omegas watched as Azazel beheaded the poor Beta, before Alastair sent out some of his Betas to hunt the newly freed Omegas down and kill them as well.

It had been horrifying, gruesome and scarring, and Dean wasn’t sure he would ever be able to get past it. He still had nightmares about the blonde headed woman’s head falling to the ground. She couldn’t have been more than twenty-one. Dean’s age. After they rid her body, Azazel announced that they would be moving the ring within the following days. For the past few weeks since the beheading, they had been moving the Omegas in small groups of four or six to the new ring location. Dean was in one of the last groups to be transferred. He had managed to forget about it until the Alpha had brought it up just now.

Alastair smiled wickedly, as if knowing exactly what Dean had been thinking. “Eat up, Omega. We leave at dawn and you’re going to need all the strength you can get.” the Alpha said before turning and walking out of the door. Dean watched with sadness sitting in his chest before slowly grabbing the turkey leg that Alastair gave him and taking a large bite of it.

x

Dean woke with a start, his heart thumping rapidly in his chest. It was still dark out, but a few stars had appeared throughout the night. Dean sat up slowly, his chain clinking around as he rubbed his eyes and looked at the bag of food on the ground. The turkey leg was gone, a bone in its place, but there was still half a roll left. However, hunger wasn’t what woke Dean. The dreamless sleep he had been having hadn’t woken him up either. Dean sniffed and realized what woke him up was the foreign scent invading the camp. That and all the yelling and howling and screaming that was going on outside. Dean swallowed and he ducked behind one of the support beams that held the roof up.

There were loud thuds every few seconds and Dean realized with horror that smoke was slowly rising through the air. Had the Alphas decided the last group of Omegas weren’t worthy of transferring? That it would be easier to kill off the weaklings and burn their bodies instead? Dean couldn’t fathom why, considering he knew some of the Omegas in his group that were pregnant with the Alphas’ pups. They wouldn’t kill the Omegas carrying their offspring, would they?

A loud bang brought Dean out of his thoughts and he yelped loudly, clutching to the support beam as he covered his mouth. The wooden door was laying on the ground and another foreign scent filled his nose. Dean’s eyes widened, horrified, seeing the shadow of a wolf. He swallowed as the shadow got larger and larger before the wolf’s snout came into view. Dean looked around wildly for something to use as a weapon before spotting a brick that was laying on the floor. He grasped it quickly before turning around, ready to throw when needed.

He watched as the wolf came into view; its’ fur a light grey on top with a mix of white and brown fur on its’ underbelly, legs, and paws. On the back of its neck, the fur turned into a light orange that went all the way up to its’ ears and part of its snout. The rest of the fur on its’ face was gray and when the wolf looked at him, its’ eyes were a pale green. Dean froze as he held the brick, his throat and mouth going dry. The smell of vanilla with a hint of cinnamon filled his nose and he realized the wolf was a Beta from how tall it was. A female.

The wolf stared at him, her green eyes scanning him before squatting down. Suddenly shifting into a girl with red curly hair and soft green eyes. “Hey,” she said softly, moving towards him, not bothered by her own nudity. “It’s okay, Omega. I’m one of the good guys.” she said with a wide smile. “I’m with Jo.”

Dean slowly lowered the brick, tilting his head. He smelled nothing but truth from her scent. He set the brick down and stared at her. “Jo?” he asked gruffly, his voice scratchy from how dry his throat was. He watched the Beta nod.

“She was the Beta,” the girl said with a slight sadness surrounding her voice. “That told us where you guys were. Where the ring is.” 

Dean’s eyebrows shot up in realization that Jo was the Beta who was spying on Azazel and Alastair, the one publicly beheaded. He swallowed thickly and stared at the Beta in front of him, unsure of whether to trust her or not. Although her scent showed no sign of dishonesty. “Oh.” is all he managed to say.

The Beta held her hand out slowly so as not to startle him. “We’re here to take you guys to a safer place. Somewhere you won’t have to worry about these horrible Alphas anymore.” she said, slowly moving towards him. He instinctively bared his teeth at her, showing his small fangs and backed up. The girl held up her hands again. “Hey, it’s okay! It’s okay.” she whispered. “I want to take the chain off you.”

Dean watched her for a moment before nodding. He kept the brick close to him as he never took his eyes off her. She moved forward and he watched while she lifted her hand and let her claws pop out. She carefully stuck one in the keyhole and wiggled her finger until a faint _click_ could be heard. The cuff fell open and the girl’s nails quickly went back to normal. She looked at Dean and held her hand out to him. “My name is Charlie.” she said softly. “And I’m here to rescue you.”

Dean nodded, wearily grabbing her hand as he stood, exhaling. Charlie smiled and gave his shoulder a tender squeeze. “I’m going to shift into my wolf form. I’ll lead you to the area where we are taking the other Omegas to. No one will hurt you, I promise.” she said with a firm voice before squatting down and jumping. In mid air, Dean watched as her form shifted into the wolf again and she landed on all fours. She looked back at Dean, nodding towards the exit before running out. Without hesitation, Dean quickly followed after her. Even though he wasn’t sure if he _quite_ trusted her yet, it was still a chance for him to escape. He stepped through the door and looked around.

It was nothing but chaos.

The first thing he noticed was all the fire. Every cabin the Omegas had been held in were broken down, the bricks scattered everywhere, the roofs burning on the ground. Puddles of blood lay here and there, a few Betas laying not too far away from them. He recognized one as Gordon. He was Alastair’s personal guard, and was there when Dean was originally kidnapped. Needless to say, He felt no remorse for Gordon’s death. Dean heard a loud roar and his head whipped around to see a wolf with black fur on his head, back, and tail with white fur on his underbelly, legs, and paws. The Omega watched as the wolf bit at another one of Alastair's Betas, Ruby, before jumping on her and knocking her onto her back. Dean heard Ruby scream loudly, watching as her hand gripped at the ground, digging her nails into the dirt. There was a loud snarl and a cry and then Ruby’s hand went still.

He turned around and looked at Dean, his fur stained pink. Dean felt his eyes widen and he quickly ran after Charlie. Heart racing, blood pumping, Dean managed to catch up with Charlie in no time. The Beta was running down the dirt path that was lit only by fires from the cabins. The smoke was becoming thicker as Dean chased after her, his head becoming light as he started coughing. He shook his head a few times before training his eyes on Charlie and keeping his pace somewhat steady. 

As they ran, Dean heard a loud, blood curdling scream, and he stopped dead in his tracks. He turned and watched as an Omega got pummeled by one of Alastair’s Betas, a rod sticking out of her chest and her blonde hair fanned around her head. In the corner of his eye, he saw a younger girl hiding behind a stone wall, her blue eyes watery. He stopped and he turned, running back to the Omega. He remembered when she was first brought to the camp, pregnant, with only her other pup who was maybe three years-old at most. Alastair treated her well until her pup was born and then they were locked into a cabin together. He kept her pup away from her before selling it off to some other tribe. At least, that’s what the whispers said. Amelia was her name, he vaguely remembered. He watched as the Beta ran back to the main area and he dropped to his knees at Amelia’s head when he knew the coast was clear. Her face was dirty from the smoke, streaks of tears the only visible thing on her skin. 

Her eyes found Dean’s and she weakly grabbed his face with her hand. He could feel the blood from it dribble down his cheek. “M-My pup,” she whispered with watery eyes. “P-Please. . . Take her. S-Save. . . my. . .” 

He watched her eyes slowly glaze over before her hand fell. Dean felt his breath escape him before he looked up wildly until his eyes landed on the scared blue ones seen from earlier. He ran over, feeling his throat burning from the smoke, as he squatted down and looked at her. “Hey,” he said softly, pushing her hair behind her ear. She looked up at him with wide eyes, her face grimy with dirt and smoke, like her mother’s. Tears were still pooling in the beautiful blue orbs. 

“I’m not supposed to talk to strangers,” she said nervously as she looked back at her mother’s body. She looked back at Dean expectantly and he let out a sigh. 

“Uh, y-yeah, okay, um. . .” he quickly held out his hand. “I’m Dean. See? Not strangers anymore.”

The pup looked at his hand before sticking her tiny hand into his, shaking it. “I’m Claire.” she said softly before breaking into a coughing fit. Dean nodded and he gently grabbed her sides.

“Okay, Claire, I’m going to get you out of here, okay?” he whispered, smelling one of Alastair's Betas not too far away. Claire looked up at him before nodding and wrapping her tiny arms around his neck. He made sure he had a good hold on her before turning around and quickly running back onto the trail. As he ran, he heard a loud _crack!_ and almost stumbled as he saw a tree falling over. Dean gasped and stopped, backing up as the tree hit the ground, sending ashes flying all around like fireflies. He turned to run back but stopped when his eyes met a beady pair of blue ones. 

Alastair was shirtless, burns and scratches all over his body. His head was covered in blood, but Dean couldn’t tell if it was his own blood or someone else’s. He hoped it was the first option. “You think you can escape, my little Omega?” Alastair asked through gritted teeth, tilting his head as he slowly stalked towards him. “I’m _sorry_ , but I can’t let that happen.” he snarled.

Dean looked down at Claire, who was burying her face into his neck, shaking even though it had to be over a hundred degrees with the fire surrounding them. He looked back at Alastair before turning and shielding himself around the pup, protecting her at all costs. He inhaled deeply to calm himself down but froze as a new scent wafted through the air. Much more prominent than the smell of the fire or even the smell of Alastair. It smelled almost earthy, like a forest right after a rainstorm. However, it also had a hint of something sweet; like honey. 

Dean chanced a glance back, still holding the pup protectively, and he felt his eyes bug out of his head. A wolf, the biggest wolf Dean had ever seen in his entire existence, stood behind Alastair. He had to have been at least five feet tall, standing well above Dean’s shoulder, and his posture screamed _Alpha_. His hair was sleek and black, a thick mane surrounded his chest and neck, his eyes a deep sea blue. He was absolutely-

“Beautiful,” Dean whispered before realizing he said it out loud. Alastair slowly turned and glared at the Alpha that was standing in front of him. The Alpha growled deep in his chest as he slowly stalked towards Alastair. The man cackled, pulling his two hand blades from his belt and twirling them around. 

“I ain’t scared of no _puppy_ ,” Alistair growled as he marched towards the Alpha. “You look more like a lapdog than you do a leader.” 

The Alpha snarled and jumped, peeling lips back and opening his wide jaws, his fangs becoming exposed. They were long and shiny and Dean’s mating gland tingled suddenly out of nowhere. Dean swallowed and looked back down at Claire before looking for an escape. He saw a small hole where the roots of the tree met the ground and he knew he had to give it a try. He gripped Claire tightly before running over to the hole and falling on his knees. Dean studied the surrounding wood before letting go of Claire. “Okay, Claire, you need to crawl through. You’re small enough that you can do it.”

“I’m scared, Dean,” she said as the tears spilled over. “I don’t wanna leave you behind. I don’t want to leave Mommy behind.”

“I’ll be right behind you,” Dean whispered as he patted her back. His heart throbbed in pain at her words and he squeezed her shoulder. “Mommy wants you too, I promise. . . Just push through and don’t look back until you’re on the other side, okay kiddo?”

Claire hesitated before nodding and he kissed her temple instinctively before pushing her under the hole. He watched her start crawling and he went to follow behind before the tree caved in. A scream escaped him as Claire disappeared from sight. He looked around, his eyes watering. “Claire!” He called Claire’s name multiple times until his voice went hoarse. Tears really stung at his eyes this time while he grabbed some of the branches to pull them back. 

“Dean!” he heard the pup yell suddenly. Dean glanced around before seeing a tiny hole in the wood. He felt relief flood through him seeing she was on the other side, completely fine. Next to her, he saw Charlie slowly come into view, the wolf nuzzling the pup before pushing her gently with her snout over to where the other Omegas crowded. Charlie looked back at Dean, a whine escaping her before the final branch caved in and she was gone. Dean let out a soft gasp before sitting on his knees. He looked around for any other escape but saw nothing except for fire.

He swallowed thickly, his vision started to blur from the lack of oxygen. He tried to stand up, but his legs wobbled and gave out quickly. He grunted as he fell on the ground, the air escaping his lungs. He felt his eyes close against his will, spots slowly filling his vision and he knew what was happening, knew that he was dying. Thoughts of Sam fleeted across his mind, along with thoughts of his mother. Her death had seemed painful, but then again she was giving birth. Maybe if Dean fell asleep. . . Maybe it wouldn’t hurt as much. 

The last fleeting thought that went through his mind was the mysterious Alpha, and him wondering why the Alpha seemed to be coming closer.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _A bridge of silver wings stretches from the dead ashes of an unforgiving nightmare_  
>  to the jeweled vision of a life started anew. — Aberjhani

“Is it really bad, Doc?” a soft voice asked, almost like an echo in Dean’s mind. Everything was still black, but it wasn’t nearly as hot as it had been before he’d lost consciousness. He couldn’t smell anything though, the oxygen tubes in his nose blocking his senses. However, he did recognize that voice as it belonged to a certain redheaded Beta. He couldn’t smell, but he could feel the worry and guilt radiating off of her. 

“Don’t you worry,” a chipper voice spoke up. “He’ll do just fine. The burns weren’t nearly as bad as they could have been. He just needs to sleep it off for a little bit.” 

Now  _ that _ voice, he didn’t recognize. It was light and happy and sort of. . . comforting? He wasn’t quite sure how to define it. It didn’t worry him though. He didn’t feel like he was in a threatening environment for some reason. Maybe he had died and gone to heaven? Although it wouldn’t make sense as to why the Beta would be there. Plus, he had never heard the other female’s voice in his entire life until now. Maybe if he would just open his  _ eyes _ , he’d be able to figure out where the fuck he was.

“Thanks, Donna. I should report this to Castiel. He’ll be happy to hear that the Omega is okay.” Charlie said. Dean could hear the smile in her voice before hearing footsteps receding until it was just the sound of computer keys clacking. Every once in a while, he could hear the click of a mouse. Dean tried to remember the last thing that happened before he had lost consciousness. Furthermore, who was Castiel? It sounded like he was the Alpha of the pack. He tried to remember before that and his heart suddenly stopped. 

_ Claire _ .

“I know you’re awake,” he heard that chipper voice again. What had Charlie called her? Donna? He blearily opened an eye, squinting at the brightness that came through the window to his right. He let his right eye adjust before opening the other one and taking in his surroundings. The walls were a lime green and the floor was made of wood. The window had some blinds, there was a chair to his right and a bench at the end of his bed. To his left was a stand that a laptop rested on and near the laptop was a blonde haired woman, her hair pulled back tightly in a bun. She was curvy, no doubt having curves that only an Omega possessed. She wore a white jacket that ended at her thighs and under it was a pair of blue jeans and a yellow top. When he met her eyes, he wasn’t surprised that they were staring right back at him.

Donna grabbed the stethoscope from around her neck and gave him a wide smile. “Alright, Dean, you don’t need to speak if you don’t want to. I just need to take your vitals and make sure that all is good.” She said softly and held a hand out to him. He looked down at it, knowing that she was trying to show she intended no harm. He nodded slowly before resting his head against the bed that already had him up in an almost sitting position but not quite. It was comfortable enough that he still felt drowsy and could easily fall asleep, but pushed up enough that Donna had no trouble getting his vitals.

Once she typed everything she looked over at him and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “You’re extremely underfed and your blood pressure is a tad high, but I think it’s normal for an Omega that went through what you did.” she said with a sigh before closing the laptop and looking at him. “How are ya feelin’?”

Dean opened his mouth to speak but Donna held up her hand. “Ah, sorry. I can be such a ditz sometimes.” she chuckled before waving said hand. “You had some pretty bad burns on your throat, so I put some bandages on them after cleaning ‘em up. You may want to wait a bit longer before trying to speak. You inhaled a lot of smoke, you poor thing. I also bandaged your ankles and wrists. They had some serious cuts from chains, I’m assuming, and there was an infection going on. So I’d give this about a week to heal properly as well, okie dokie?”

He didn’t know what to say but nodded slowly, wincing as he felt the bandage on the front of his neck crinkle. He looked over at the window, letting out a deep breath before gazing back towards Donna. He brought his hand up to point at the oxygen tube. The other Omega seemed to know exactly was he was asking because she tenderly took the tube off his face for him. Once she set it down, Dean got a full whiff of her scent. She smelled of honeydew and watermelon. It was actually a pretty sweet scent. She also radiated comforting and happy vibes, which helped calm his nerves a lot. She grabbed his hand tenderly and patted it.

“Don’t you worry, hun. You’re in good hands.” she said in a soothing voice. “I have to go look over the other Omegas that came from the ring but I’ll be back before you can say ‘Son of a butternut squash’.” she hummed with a smile. Dean couldn’t help but give a mute chuckle at just how odd yet sweet she was. He watched her walk away before resting his head back and let his thoughts drift. Within minutes, he was slipping back into sleep.

  
  


x

Charlie cleared her throat as she stared at the wooden door in front of her before rapping her knuckles against it a few times. She waited patiently, scratching behind her ear before the door opened wide and she was greeted with a pair of chocolate brown eyes and the scent of mint and pine. Charlie smiled and nodded. “Hello, Billie.” she said to the Beta with a nervous smile. Billie was wearing the same outfit she always did on Tuesdays: a brown leather jacket, black v-neck that hugged her slim waist, fitted blue jeans, and black ankle boots. Her black hair was pulled up in a bun, a few hairs twirling down the side and framing her diamond shaped face.

“Charlie,” she said in that sultry voice only she seemed to possess. Billie backed up slowly and let Charlie walk into the cabin. Charlie turned around and looked out windows that gave an amazing view of the pack grounds. She looked back and stared at Billie with an awkward smile as she picked at non-existing threads on the hem of her shirt.

“So, is Cas awake?” she asked, looking at the only other door in the cabin that led to the Alpha’s bed. The cabin only had two rooms; the living room/kitchen/dining room, and then the bedroom that was on the other side of a mahogany door. As if on cue, it swung open and the Alpha appeared, along with the scent of a fresh rainstorm and honey, only wearing a pair of sweatpants. A large cut that went from his peck down to his hip bone caught Charlie’s attention. It was where the other Alpha, the gross one who smelled of nothing but rotten meat and ash, had sliced Castiel before running away into the flames. She watched as a red-haired Omega rushed after him with nothing but annoyance, the scent of mixed berries following her.

“Castiel, let me finish stitching you up, brother!” the Omega hissed with anger, carrying a small box with medical supplies in it. The Alpha rolled his eyes and waved her off. 

“Anna, you’ve stitched it up enough. I don’t see my liver, kidneys, or intestines poking out anywhere and the bleeding stopped days ago. I’m  _ fine _ .” he said with feigned frustration. All three of them knew Castiel was just tired. He walked over and sat down on the lounge chair slowly, wincing in pain. Anna huffed in frustration, obviously not satisfied with Castiel’s answer, but nonetheless she turned on her heel and disappeared into the bedroom. He sighed, a mixture of relief and exhaustion, before his dreary blue eyes shifted to Charlie and then Billie.

Charlie walked over to the leather brown couch, four feet away from the lounge chair. There was silence for a few moments, the only sound that could be heard was the crackling from the fireplace. Charlie sighed and clapped her hands as she looked over to Cas. “The Omega is going to be okay. Donna said to give it another day to make sure that everything truly is fine and then we can move him into the designated cabin.”

“And the pup?” Castiel asked, putting his fingers on either side of his forehead, rubbing his temples. He’d had a headache ever since he had gotten a sniff of the new Omega; smelling the mixture of ginger and spice and something else that he couldn’t quite place. It was intoxicating to say the least and Cas was fighting every urge in his body to not go over to the nurse cabin and scent him again and again. He could even smell the lingering scent on Charlie, which is why his head was pounding so much.

“She’s fine,” Charlie nodded as she reached back and put her curly red locks into a ponytail. She sighed and folded her hands together in her lap. “She’s been placed with Jody for now until we know the Omega is fit enough to take her back.” 

Castiel moved his hands down to his side to help him sit up slowly as he sat straight up and swung his legs around, resting them on the ground. “Alright, good. Make sure his cabin has enough food and supplies. Also tell Benny to move a smaller bed there.” he said as he slowly stood before walking over to the window and looking out over the circle of Cabins that rest below the cliff which his own house sat on. There were twenty-four cabins that rest in a perfect circle. A large fence around them. Only twelve were for residents, three being the nursing cabin, the food hall, and a nursery. The rest were for new members or for Omegas and Betas who were rescued on the missions they did. Cas’ father had found this field many years ago and they built a sanctuary for their pack here. With him, Balthazar, and Billie to guard the borders at night, it was the safest place to exist in the state of Maine. 

Charlie stood up and nodded. “Yes, Alpha.” She glanced back at Billie before walking to the door and leaving. Castiel watched her walk down the trail before disappearing and glanced back at the field with a deep sigh. He heard Billie’s footsteps approach and a gentle hand on his back. 

“I do suggest you lay down, Alpha. You’ve had an exhausting few days.” She said in her sultry voice. Castiel waved his hand as he turned to walk back to the lounge chair. He stopped and instead of sitting down, he decided to walk over and stare at the fire. He watched the little embers fly around every time the wood cracked, making a popping noise.

“I can’t rest, knowing that there were more Omegas in that ring that got transferred before we could save them.” he growled. “Jo did not give her life for us to only grab four Omegas out of the thirty-six that were there, Billie.” he looked up at her with intense blue eyes. “We need to send out a party. Go back to where their camp used to be and get their scent. We need to track them down and rescue the rest of them and get them help.” He raised a hand to cover his lips before rubbing his face. Most importantly, they needed to catch _him_. He heard the door open and knew Anna had come out. He felt her gentle hand on his shoulder and he felt his rigid posture fade as his shoulders sagged.

“Castiel, you won’t be able to help those Omegas until you are at your full strength.” she whispered softly as she tilted her head and looked up at him with her calm brown eyes. She placed a soft hand on his cheek. “Please, brother. Let me finish stitching you up now. That way you can rest and in a few days time you should be able to shift into your wolf without tearing them.”

“Who will guard the borders if I stay here?” he scowled and he gently pushed her hand away. “I can’t leave Billie and Balthazar do it by themselves.” he snarled turning his back to her, beginning to pace . “What if those Alphas decide to attack? Or a completely different pack decides to? Balthazar and Billie won’t be able to fend off all the borders.” He hesitates for a moment. “Anna, what if we lose _his_ scent along with the others? We were so close. . .” He began to walk back into the bedroom but was stopped by Billie’s hand now. His intense blue gaze lifted to her eyes. “Let go, Beta.”

Billie did as she was told but she didn’t move out of the way. “Give us more credit.” she said with a calm look. “You know Benny and Anna will be more than willing to help pick up slack while you’re healing. If need be, we can also have Ellen and Bobby help too.” she walked over to the brown leather couch and sat down, crossing her legs and leaning back . “Admit it, Castiel. You aren’t in any shape to protect a pack right now. And you sure as hell aren’t in any shape to catch. . . You know.” she murmured as her voice faded for a moment. “If any of them come back, you’ll be as good as dead.” she raised her eyes up to him and quirked an eyebrow.

Castiel sighed with genuine frustration this time before looking back at Anna, scratching his stubble. As much as he hated to admit it, both the Omega and Beta were right. The mission could wait, even if it was just for a few days. He caved in and nodded. “Alright. Stitch me up.”

x

Dean sat on the hospital bed, letting Donna check over his wounds and take his vitals one final time. Once she was done, she typed something up before looking over at him. “Dean,” she said softly. “I know you’re going to start your heat soon. . . I can have them provide you with some fake knots, or talk to Castiel about letting an Alpha come into the camp to help.” she suggested as she rested her hand on his arm. Dean shook his head quickly as he swallowed. He didn’t want  _ any _ Alpha near him anytime soon. The last time he had been in heat. . . Dean shuddered. 

“A fake knot should-should be fine.” he rasped, still trying to use his vocal cords and ignoring the slight burn that ran along the muscles whenever he spoke. Just a fake knot alone was pushing it. He lowered his head and swallowed thickly before looking back at Donna and offering her a weak smile.

“Okie dokie,” she gave a curt nod before closing the lid of her laptop. “I’ll go get Charlie so she can take you to your cabin.” she gave him a warm smile and turned on her heel. Dean reached out and touched her arm gently, worry flashing across his face as she turned around. “Something wrong, Dean?”

“Claire,” he whispered before trying to clear his throat. That was a bad idea. He winced at the sharp pain he felt but didn’t break eye contact with Donna. “Is she okay?”

Donna tilted her head but nodded. “She’s perfectly fine.” she reassured him as she gave his hand a squeeze. “She’s staying with my mate and I until after your heat passes. I promise your pup will be back the day your heat is over.”

“Oh, uh, s-she isn’t. . .” Dean’s voice faltered and his looked down at his folded hands. Donna looked at him before realization dawned on her face.

“I see,” she said softly. “Well, seeing as her mother has passed— I’m assuming — if you’d like, you can still keep her with you.” 

He thought it over, mulling it in his head while thoughts went back to the night Amelia died. It was practically her final words, her begging him to save her pup. Hadn’t he fulfilled her wish? He got her out of the fire, didn’t he? He made sure she was safe and with Charlie. Yet, he still felt as if his duties weren’t completely fulfilled. He ran the back of his neck tenderly before looking over at Donna. “Um. . . I’ll need to, uh, think about it.” he sighed. He was able to take care of Sam, but-

_ Sam _ . 

“Shit,” Dean whispered before moving to jump up, but Donna stopped him and made him sit down. She opened her mouth to say something, but Dean cut her off. “I have to get out of here.” he begged. “I-I have to get to Sammy. He doesn’t know where I am! I need to find him.” he pleaded, trying to get up.

Donna shook her head, radiating calming vibes, but he couldn’t calm down.  _ Wouldn't  _ calm down. Dean mustered what strength he had left and pushed her back before standing up and running out of the room. His leg burned and his throat was absolutely on fire, but he didn't care. He needed to get back home. His eyes looked around wildly for the exit door before he took a sharp left. He ran down the hallway, seeing a flash of white and turning right. Spotting the door right in front of him, going towards it, his hand grabbing the handle bar and pushing it open. A cold gust of wind hit his face before feeling a pinch in his thigh that made him stop. Grunting, he turned around, his finger picking at something fluffy. He pulled it out and looked at it, the edge of his vision spinning wildly. He stared at the ball of pink fluff before seeing a sleek black line that had a fine tip point at the end of it.

A dart.

Dean went to say something but his mouth was numb. He saw Donna slowly standing straight, lowering the gun to her side. “Sorry, Dean.” she said with regret. Dean lifted his hand to say something, again. But, instead saw her disappear from his vision, the wooden floor taking her place, and then nothing but blackness.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _I meant it when I said I didn’t believe in love at first sight. It takes time to really, truly fall for someone. Yet I believe in a moment. A moment when you glimpse the truth within someone, and they glimpse the truth within you. In that moment, you don’t belong to yourself any longer, not completely. Part of you belongs to him; part of him belongs to you. After that, you can’t take it back, no matter how much you want to, no matter how hard you try._ — Claudia Gray

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is some smut this chapter, though it is somewhat brief ;) Just an FYI!

Dean awoke with a start, both eyes opening as his pupils shrunk down to black specks from the light. His head was pounding and his arms and legs felt heavy. He groaned and slowly forced himself to sit up, his back hitting something solid. Peering around, he took in the new room. The walls were made completely of smooth wood, same for the floor and ceiling. Seeing one dark beam that pressed against either side of the raised roof, seemingly to help support it. He glanced to his right, seeing a small cook stove and a sink with two cupboards hanging above them, a lantern sitting atop a shelf that was built into the wall not far from it. Turning attention to his left, he almost yelped. There was a small table with two chairs, but in one of those chairs was a man.

His shoulders were broad but his torso was lean. The shirt he was wearing was a little baggy on him and the first three buttons were undone, showing a sneak peek at a tanned chest. He wore a pair of jeans and combat boots on his feet, but Dean could tell he had runner legs. His eyes traveled up to the man’s face to a riveting pair of blue irises, as blue as the deep sea. His nose was thin and his lips were extremely plump, though slightly chapped. He had dark brown hair that was messy and tousled and shaggy, but it looked good on him. Almost fitting for his style. 

When the Alpha moved his arm, Dean saw a design imprinted on his wrist, almost like a tattoo, but he didn’t get to see what it was before the wrist disappeared out of sight. Dean went to say something when a familiar scent hit his nose; the smell of a forest after a rainstorm and honey. His eyes widened as he made the connection in his head.  _ Alpha _ .

“You made quite the scene, Omega,” he said, looking down at his pants. His voice was deep, almost gravelly, but it sent shivers down Dean’s spine that he had never felt before. The Alpha looked up at him, a lopsided grin slowly spreading across his face. “It’s a good thing Donna is quite the marksman. Or woman, in this case.” he chuckled before standing up. Dean flinched and bared his teeth on instinct, glaring at the strange man. The Alpha’s eyes widened and he opened his mouth to say something before deciding against it and sitting back down.

“Alright,” he said calmly. “I’ll sit. I’m not here to hurt you Om-“

“Dean.” he interrupted and the Alpha watched him curiously, tilting his head before nodding slowly.

“I’m not here to hurt you,  _ Dean _ .” he fixed before holding his hand at himself. “My name is Castiel. I’m the Alpha that runs this pack.” he said slowly so Dean could let that sink in. Dean’s brows furrowing as he eyed Castiel.

“You’re the black wolf. The one who saved me from the fire.” Dean stated, looking up at him. He nodded.

“I am.” he said, letting his elbows rest on his knees. He folded his hands together, his posture sagging while he stared at Dean. “I was the one who planned the attack on the Omega ring. To help save Omegas like you.” 

He stared at the Alpha before narrowing his eyes at him. “Some fucking plan,” he muttered and looked away before biting his tongue. He didn’t know this Alpha from Adam, but he had still saved Dean’s ass. Not to mention, Dean had no clue on whether or not this Alpha was aggressive. He needed to play it smart if he was going to get back to Sam. He cleared his throat, wincing at the pain. “Sorry.” he murmured as he looked down at his hands.

Castiel nodded. “Thank you.” He slowly stood, making sure that Dean stayed calm. “I’m not Alistair, Dean, nor am I Azazel. It took longer than planned because we had to mourn a member of our pack.” he said, his voice a little tighter than earlier. “We didn't have as much information as we needed, so we didn’t know they’d planned on moving as quickly as they did. We thought we had  _ some  _ time, but we were wrong. By the time we got there, over half of the Omegas were already gone, so we focused on saving the Omegas who were there.”

Dean nodded at the Alpha. When Castiel stood, Dean saw the hint of some stitches poking out from behind the shirt but he said nothing. Instead, bowed his head and looked down at his hands again because he decided they were far more interesting than the attractive Alpha in front of him. This Alpha didn’t seem like Alistair or Azazel. For starters, he didn’t have Dean chained up already. He took a chance and glanced up at the Alpha who was watching him intently. 

“As long as you are here, you’ll have my protection Dean. I promise you that.” he said before walking back towards the door. Dean could have sworn he saw the Alpha’s nostrils flare, but it happened too quickly for him to be sure. “I don’t know why you were trying to escape, but I suggest you wait until your incoming heat passes.” Dean glanced up at him, his cheeks tinted pink. 

“I, u-um, it-“

“Donna told me,” Castiel said coolly. “We can protect you while you’re in heat. We aren’t holding you against your will.” he said and turned to walk towards the door. He grabbed the handle but paused. “I’m sure that you don’t want to leave until after your heat. Once you’re out in the woods, any Alpha within a ten mile radius will be able to smell you.” he said and then he was gone. Dean stared at the door before looking out the window near his bed. His eyes widened as he saw small flakes of snow twirling around and landing on the green grass. The first snowfall of winter. He let out a sharp breath and sat back down on the bed. It was only October, how could it already be snowing?

Regardless, he knew that Castiel was right. If Dean were to leave before his heat hit, he would be as good as dead out in the forest by himself. Nothing but a scrumptious piece of Omega ass for any Alpha to claim. Not only would he be in danger of an Alpha, but it was starting to snow now and Dean had no idea how far from his den he was. He didn’t even know how far away from Alistair and Azazel’s old camp he was. He was blindfolded before he got there so he didn’t even know what path to take if by some miracle he made it back to the ring.

Not to mention, he wasn’t sure if Sam was there. With the snow falling and slowly collecting on the ground, he wouldn’t be able to pick up any kind of lingering scent until it was springtime at least. Dean growled in frustration as he plopped back down on the soft bed. He would have to stay here until winter passed. He knew that was the smartest choice for survival.  _ It could be worse _ , he reminded himself. Here, he had guaranteed food, guaranteed shelter, and guaranteed protection. He also had a nice bed that wasn’t cold like the floor at the old camp was. Needless to say, it was actually rather cozy. He slowly stood up and walked towards the miniature kitchen and grabbed a roll from the basket that sat on the windowsill and took a bite out of it. 

He looked out another window, one next to the front door and watched as Omegas and Betas walked around, wearing winter jackets and boots. Pups ran all around, throwing crumbling snowballs at each other and making snow angels. He was about to take another roll when a cramp hit, knocking him to his knees. He gasped for air before another cramp came and he felt some slick escape from his hole. He inhaled deeply and exhaled, looking up at the sky before he slowly stood and made his way over to the bed. Whimpering, he sat down on the wooden floor before it, feeling more slick start to pool in his pants. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, gripping his sides tightly as he started preparing himself for the fever that was bound to come soon.

x

Billie kept her eyes focused on the small circle of cabins, feeling the snow flakes land on her thick coat of brown fur. The first snow, and it was only October. She had a feeling deep in her gut that this was going to be the worst winter yet. Her ears twitched at every small noise made throughout the stillness of the night, inhaling deeply every once in a while to check and see if she could smell any foreign scent that wasn’t Castiel’s or her pack mates, but detected nothing. She stood up slowly from her sitting position, waiting a few more moments before trotting along the path quietly and stealthily. Keeping her body close to the ground, she made her way over to another spot that gave a better look at the food hall and nursery before she slowly laid down, her front paws resting in front of her. From what she could tell so far, it was going to be a peaceful night. She glanced up again and watched the twirling snowflakes dance together before landing on the ground peacefully.

A snap of a twig behind her set her hearing off and before the intruder could breathe, she was turned around her jaws on their neck and ready to snap hard. Before she clamped down, the smell of leather and margaritas filled her senses and she stiffened. She slowly pulled back, staring at the black and white wolf. His top layer of his coat was an ashy black with stray white hairs making an appearance here and there. The tips of his ears were a mix of white, brown, and black; the fur on his face a grayish color that bled into white around his snout, minus the black strip on top of it. The rest of his fur that started at his sides and went down all the way to his paws was white. His golden eyes were filled with amusement.

_ On edge there, Billie _ ? he mused at her, moving to stand beside her as he looked out over the camp.

_ One can never be too careful nowadays, Balthazar _ . she chided back before looking out at the cabins with him. Balthazar sat down, his tail curling around his legs while he licked his chops. She sat down too, looking up as the snow continued to fall. Everything was still and silent as they stayed next to each other for a few moments.

_ How is our Cassie doing _ ? Balthazar glanced at her.  _ Wounds are coming along nicely, I hope _ ?

_ He’s as stubborn as ever _ , she snuffed, looking over to her right.  _ Alphas. It took almost all day to convince him to stay in his cabin. Finally I told him that if he came with us, we’d be more worried about him than the pack and that would give intruders a weak spot. That seemed to convince him to stay put _ . Amusement flickered in her eyes.  _ Was he always this stubborn _ ?

Balthazer snorted.  _ It’s actually gotten quite worse with age. He was the youngest of Gabriel and I, Anna being the only pup who was younger than us. He knew his place but the  _ moment _ he presented as Alpha, _ Balthazar rolled his eyes.  _ Well, father let it go straight to his head _ . 

The smell of smoke and whiskey drafted in the air before a growl interrupted them and they both turned around to see a large wolf that was brown with specks of blonde everywhere look down at them with disapproval.  _ You two need to quit flapping your mouth and do what we’ve been sent out here to do.  _ Protect  _ the pact, not socialize _ . he said and glared at both of them. Billie rolled her eyes but nodded, getting up and walking to the next post that was a few yards away.

The wolf looked over to Balthazar, who was still staring at him.  _ Why are you still here _ ? the wolf stared him down. Balthazar shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly and turned, running the other direction. The wolf huffed as he sat down, rolling his eyes. 

_ Idjits _ .

x

Dean whimpered, feeling the itch deep inside his chest. The fever had broken and he was grateful for that, but now he was shaking with want—  _ need _ — for a knot. His legs were slicked up and a puddle laid on the floor around him. He looked over at the chest that one of Cas’s Betas, Benny, had brought in earlier. He had been a wet mess for an hour now, but wasn’t able to bring himself to take even a peek at the chest, let alone look inside it. The last time he’d had his heat, he denied any kind of knot— real or fake— because he knew Alistair was around; just lurking and creeping,  _ waiting _ for the right moment to attack. He had almost died in that camp, denying any knot of any kind during his heats there. He was too afraid for his own life, yet— ironically— he constantly put himself in danger when he denied his body what it truly needed.

However, now it was different, because Alistair was long gone, right? The Alpha had sworn his protection for as long as Dean was there so he had nothing to worry about.  _ Right _ ? Except what if this Alpha really wasn’t any different? What if he was just waiting for Dean to let his guard down so that  _ he _ could strike? He hadn’t smelled any type of threat or dishonesty when Castiel said that he was safe there, but there was just a tiny little gnat in the back of his mind that kept him worried, anxious, and on edge. 

He mulled it over again in his head as he bit his lip. His cramps felt like they were eating away at him and, for a split second, he felt a shiver of pure fear run down his spine. What if this heat was it? The one that killed him? If he denied the knot again, couldn’t he die? He knew he had been pushing his luck for the past however many months while held in captivity. It seemed that every time he denied a knot, the pain would get worse and worse during each heat. Wasn’t that a sign that he could die? Dean stared down at the floor before narrowing his eyes. He couldn’t let that happen, not now. Not when he was so close to freedom, to finding Sam. He would never know what happened to Dean if he died.

Dean exhaled sharply, finally caving and crawling over. His heats had been bad in the past, but this one seemed as if it was the worse and he just couldn’t risk it. He couldn’t risk it being the final one. He gripped the wooden chest and pushed it open, looking down at the different sized knots that laid in front of him. His hole fluttered at just the thought of using one; his brain began chanting a mantra of  _ knotbreedmate,  _ repeatedly. 

He spotted the second largest one before whimpering and closing the chest altogether. He lowered his head onto his knees, feeling beads of sweet gather on his neck. He let out a sigh before glancing back at the chest and biting the inside of his cheek.  _ Pull yourself together, Winchester.  _ He gritted his teeth and moved back to the chest, reaching in and grabbing the purple fake-knot, the second biggest knot of the collection. He looked down at it, turning it around in his hand, and suddenly realized he was unsure of how exactly to  _ use _ it. He looked it up and down before wincing as another cramp hit him, and decided that he was about to find out.

He moved over to the floor and set it on the ground, noticing that it had a suction cup-like bottom. Filled with doubt, he slowly pushed it onto the floor before watching as the knot stayed in place with fascination. He tried to remember a time where he had used a fake knot but it was a blurred memory. In fact, he had to quickly stop thinking that far back before he ended up upsetting himself or worse, triggering horrific memories he has been trying to forget. He felt more slick gush out of him and the mantra of  _ knotbreedmate _ intensified, being a welcoming distraction for him. 

He moved onto his knees, angling the knot right under his entrance before he slowly brushed it against his hole, testing it out. He felt his entrance flutter and his breath hitch as the blunt head of the knot pressed against him. He looked down at his cock, seeing it was already half hard just from that slight brush. He bit his lip and tried to relax his body as he slowly slid down, his eyes squeezing shut, his mouth went slack. It burned at first, but inch by delicious inch, it soon turned into a pleasuring feeling. He waited for a moment, letting his body adjust to the thick knot before slowly lifting himself up on his knees and sliding back down again, a groan escaping him and slick made its way down his thighs. All thoughts prior to the knot being inside him seemed to evaporate quickly when his hips seemed to take control, having a mind of their own as they slowly began rolling in circles. Quiet gasps escaping when he felt the knot brushing against his prostate every few seconds.

“Fuck,” he whispered through gritted teeth before closing his eyes, inhaling deeply. He tried to let his mind stay blank, tried not to think of the hellhole he had been a prisoner of for so long, when something hit his nose. His eyes shot open as he looked around before they settled on the chair the Alpha had been in earlier. There was that lingering scent of a forest after a rainstorm and honey mixed together from earlier, he couldn’t help how his breath hitched as some slick escaped him. It running down the fake knot and gathering on to the floor. He swallowed thickly and closed his eyes again, inhaling deeply. Without his permission, an image slowly formed in his mind, foggy at first but becoming more clear every time he inhaled. 

Dean instinctively grabbed his cock, tentatively fisting at first before matching his pumps with the rhythm his hips had set. He felt himself already edging close to an orgasm as the image cleared and stayed imprinted on the back of his eyelids. Suddenly, his vision turned white and his legs trembled with the first spurt of come escaping him and landing on the floor. A moan following when the fake knot attached inside him before he pumped his cock quicker, more come spewing out of it. Slick gathering around his legs. He felt the last of his come escape him and fell back onto his knees, panting heavily, his hand letting go of his now softening member. He waited for the knot to go down, felt heat rise up his cheeks, his eyes staring up at the ceiling. He was not willing to admit that what officially sent him over the edge was the image of a blue-eyed Alpha with extremely plump lips and an intoxicating scent. 

He also wasn’t willing to admit that the moans he made sounded a lot like the word ‘Cas’.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Now, as we stand three feet apart and stare at each other, I feel the full distance that comes with spending so much time apart, a moment filled with the electricity of a first meeting and the uncertainty of strangers._ — Marie Lu

Dean’s heat went the same as the first day for the rest of the week. By the following Thursday, he was pretty much dry and the slick had decreased immensely. He cleaned up the cabin and the sheets and even managed to sit on the small front porch that was linked to his cabin for a little while. The snow was sticking to the ground by Friday, and on Saturday morning it was up about four inches. Charlie had visited him every day during his heat to give him food and take his dirty laundry to God knows where. 

While Charlie had been a nice comfort, he still missed Sam like crazy. Once his heat had officially finished, he was already trying to figure out what his plan would be to find Sam. He was looking at a map of the campgrounds that Benny had given him when there was a soft knock on his door. He slowly stood up, pulling the hem of his black long sleeved sweater down over his jeans. He hadn’t really had clothes when they rescued him, but Charlie made damn certain that he got a full new wardrobe, thanks to the help of her friend Balthazar.

Dean couldn’t help but feel as if he had met Balthazar before but regardless, he still thanked them for the fitting winter clothes. Dean rolled his sleeves up to his elbows before grabbing the handle and opening the door. And, was greeted by something hitting his leg  _ hard _ . ,He looked down to see a head full of wild and curly blonde hair and could feel the squeeze of tiny arms around his calf. 

“Dean!” Claire grinned with excitement before pulling back and looking up at him with a wide smile and a twinkle in her blue eyes. Dean couldn’t help but feel his face softened as he picked her up and put her on his hip, wrapping his arms protectively around her and resting his forehead against hers affectionately.

“Hey, goober,” he said with a slight grin. He had only met her once, but he was already growing fond of her. Even he couldn’t deny that they formed a bond that night when he saved her from the fire. He looked up to see a Beta standing at the entrance, her brown hair cut into a pixie style. Her cheeks were rosy and the tips of her ears and nose were a light shade of pink. Dean offered her a shy smile before setting Claire down. “Come on in.”

“Thanks,” she said as she walked in before closing the door. She wore a brown leather jacket, a white shirt, and slim jeans that were rolled at the ankles, a pair of boots on her feet. She took off the black leather gloves she was wearing along with the scarf around her neck before setting them on the table and tucking her hands into her pocket, glancing around the room before her eyes landed on the fireplace. “I see you found the fire pit.” she said with a grin. Dean chuckled deeply.

He hadn’t noticed it at first, but before he could really check the cabin out, his heat had hit him. After it passed, he got a chance to explore and realized there was a dent in the wall with a chimney. He looked at it and then back at her. “Yeah, turns out it’s pretty useful.”

The Beta hummed in agreement before her eyebrows shot up. “Sorry, forgot to introduce myself,” she laughed and stuck her hand out. He reached, gaining a firm shake that caught him off guard. “Jody Mills. I’m Donna’s mate.” 

“Oh,” he said as recognition rested on his face. “Yeah, um, Donna told me about you when I met her. Thank you. . . For watching Claire,” he said as he looked over at the pup who was jumping on the bed. He had decided two days prior that he wouldn’t be able to give her away. One of the first things on his mind when he got out of his heat daze was the pup and her well being. Benny had told him that he would bring the second bed in first thing in the morning. 

Jody waved her hand, giving him a smile that was just as warm as Donna’s. It was comforting even and he couldn’t help but relax around her. She gave off a motherly vibe, her scent smelling of sugar cookies and pumpkin spice. It was warm and welcoming. “It’s no problem. Donna and I loved having her around.” She said fondly, looking at the little girl who was laying down now. Dean mentally noted he was glad the sheets had been changed.

Before he could say anything, he heard a small  _ ding _ ! and realized the water was done boiling. He excused himself before walking over and taking it off the stove, pouring it into a mug. He glanced over his shoulder at Jody. “Hot cocoa?” he asked. She smiled and gave a curt nod. 

“Sure,” she hummed before walking over to the table and sitting down. Dean came over a few seconds later with two mugs and then let out a breath before taking in a small sip, humming in delight. He couldn’t remember how long it had been since he’d had hot chocolate. Even before Alistair, hot chocolate was a rarity at the den with Sam. However, here at the camp, they gave it in tiny packets.

Jody took a sip from her own mug as she glanced at the papers scattered across the table before setting her mug down. “Planning an escape?” she asked with a smirk, her brown eyes filled with amusement and warmth. Dean looked down at where she had been looking before laughing nervously.

“Um, no, not really.” Dean said as he set his own mug down. He grabbed the map and notepad over, taking the pencil in hand, tapping it a few times. “I’m just. . . Trying to figure out where my home is.”

Jody made an ‘ah’ sound as she nodded her head. “I don’t mean to toot my own horn or anything, but I’d say this is a pretty nice home.” she said as she took another sip of her mug before smiling at Dean. “I mean, I understand you wanting to leave and I’m not saying don’t, but I can promise you that you won’t find any other Alphas out there that are like Castiel.”

He gave a lopsided smile. “Trust me, I know, but. . .” he sighed. “I have a brother I need to get back to. A den. The only problem is that I’m not sure how far it is from here.”

Jody looked over at the map of the campsite and her brows furrowed. “You came from the Omega ring, right?” she asked as she glanced at Dean. He nodded. 

“I did. I would retrace my steps from there but the problem is that when they nabbed me, they knocked me out and blindfolded me.” he frowned. “I have no idea which direction they carried me or how far the trip was. . .” he sighed as he leaned back into his chair, tossing the pencil on the notepad. “I won’t be able to head out until spring and by then. . .” His eyes watered.

“The scent will be gone,” Jody finished for him and he nodded. She sighed and looked down at the map before putting her hand gently on his arm. “I’m not sure what exactly we can do as of right now, but I know once Spring comes around. . . Maybe I can gather a few pack members and we can send out a small search party.” she suggested. He looked at her skeptically.

“While that’s a great idea, I don’t have anything that belongs to Sammy and, like you said earlier, the scent will be long gone.” he sighed with defeat. 

“Again, don’t mean to toot my own horn,” Jody’s lips twisted into a smirk. “but I’ve been able to do it before with less than what you have right now.” she said as she gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. He looked up at her with watery eyes. “Dean, I can promise you we’ll find your home. Or your brother, whichever happens first.” she said in a firm tone. “For now, just hang tight and let this nasty winter blow over. First day of Spring, I’ll get a small group together and we can talk more in depth.”

Tears spilled over his eyes, falling down his cheeks. He stood up and wrapped her in a hug, a mute sob escaping him as he hooked his chin over her shoulder. “Thank you, Jody. That would mean the  _ world _ to me.”

She smiled and patted his shoulder. “You’re more than welcome.”

x

The snow was falling at a faster rate than Castiel had originally planned. It wasn’t the worst winter they had experienced over the past twenty or thirty years, but it wasn’t the easiest one they’d had either. He stood at the top of the cliff, sniffing the air every few moments as he stared around the circle of cabins. No foreign scent could be detected, which was good, but he still needed to make his rounds so that his scent was more prominent. Seeing as he was bedridden for the past few days, he needed to freshen up his scent, to show his claim of territory. He turned around before running down the cliff on all fours, his ears flattening as he picked up speed until he was down on level ground with the cabins. He shook his entire body, the snow flying off his thick black fur, before he started moving along the perimeter, spraying his scent every now and then on a tree he would walk by.

_ Honestly, Cassie, I wish you would learn a different way to mark your territory _ . he heard his brother say as Balthazar came into view. Castiel rolled his eyes, lowering his leg down and looking back at him.  _ It’s really degrading for a wolf like you _ .

_ What am I supposed to do? It makes my scent last longer _ . Castiel shot him a glare.  _ If you don’t like it, I can have Benny take your place as night guard _ .

_ Alright, alright. I’ll keep my snout shut _ . Balthazar looked at him with amusement before looking out at the cabins. The snow had stopped falling for the time being, the night air still once more. Castiel started walking again, slower this time. 

_ How is your mate doing _ ? Castiel asked absentmindedly as he looked around. It had been quite a shock when his so claimed ‘bachelor’ brother had come out saying he was mated. Even more of a shocker that it turned out to be Hannah, an Omega they had rescued years ago that decided to stay and become part of the pack.

_ Hannah is doing lovely. She tells me to send hugs and  _ many _ kisses _ . he said, his eyes showing the smile that his snout couldn’t. Castiel huffed a breath, a translucent cloud taking its’ place. He sat down, his ears pointed up when he looked over at the cabin where the new Omega had been staying. Balthazar glanced over to see where Castiel was looking before sitting down next to him.  _ You know _ , he slowly looked back at Castiel,  _ speaking of mate, h _ \- 

Castiel gave him a deadly glare that made Balthazar instantly stop that train of thought.  _ Tread carefully, brother _ . 

Balthazar nodded, giving him a sheepish look.  _ Yes, right, of course _ . He looked back at the cabin.  _ Dean seems to be settling in rather nicely compared to the other Omegas we saved _ .

_ Looks can be deceiving, _ Castiel said wearily.  _ While he didn’t have a lot of physical scars, I’m afraid that poor excuse of an Alpha has given him more mental scars than he lets on _ . Castiel felt a small bubble of sadness and anger at the thought of what Dean must have gone through.  _ I still think I should have tore him limb from limb _ .

Balthazar shook his head.  _ I think one out of two isn’t bad _ . he looked at his brother. Castiel nodded slowly, remembering how he tore the other Alpha limb from limb before watching Alistair escape.

_ I suppose you’re right, _ Castiel purred in agreement.  _ One out of two is good enough. . . For now _ . 

He looked at Balthazar before glancing at Dean’s cabin for a few seconds longer than necessary and then returned to spraying his scent on a tree every once in a while. Once he was finished with scenting the borders, Balthazar, Billie, and Bobby went back to their cabins that belonged in the circle. Castiel did one more lap around the borders before turning in for the night himself, making his way to his cabin on the cliff and shutting the door behind him.

x

_ Embers littered the air, twirling around as the smell of smoke invaded every sense he had, the sky filled an inky blackness. Dean looked around him, laid on his knees, staring at the flames that continued to engulf his home, being the only light source he had. Except for it wasn’t  _ his _ home per say, but the new camp. The pack that was lead by Castiel. Except for where the cabins once stood was now only heaps of ash, the once snowy ground now charred . Everywhere he looked, he saw nothing but ash and flames that continued to rise. Charred bodies of Omegas and Betas laid across the wide field, all different sizes. Dean’s breath caught in his throat when he saw a rather small corpse. _

_ “Claire!” he cried out, standing up and running over to the tiny scorched bones. The skull looked as if though there was a fracture, like her tiny head had been kicked in by a large boot. He could make out her arms and legs, but couldn’t see her spine or ribs. His breath escaped him in tiny sobs as he held his hands above what remained of the body, not sure what to touch. “Oh, baby, no. . .” _

_ A loud snap made him spin around quickly, his heart beating in his throat. He watched as glowing, icy blue orbs filled with nothing but evil and wickedness appeared through the flames. As they got closer, Alistair’s body came into view. He seemed a lot bonier than Dean remembered, his ribs poking against his skin and his fingers basically bone with skin wrapped tightly around them. In one hand, he held a tall spear that continuously dripped blood. Dean whimpered as the Alpha walked towards him, his smile as crooked and scary as ever. _

_ “Hush now, little Omega,” he cooed as he touched Dean’s head tenderly. “There’s no need to cry. . . This was never your home in the first place.”  _

_ “A-Alpha, please. . . please, no!” he sobbed as he tried to get away from Alistair’s touch. His grip tightened and he yanked Dean’s hair back so that they made eye contact. Except for when Dean’s eyes landed on his face, there wasn’t a face there anymore. It was a charred skull with crooked teeth forever in the form of a smile. _

_ “Now, now,” he whispered, his teeth clacking against each other, skull tilted to the right. “What have I told you about that pesky whining?” _

Dean woke with a start, sitting up quickly as his heart beat rapidly against his chest. He looked around the room quickly, expecting things to be on fire and feeling ridiculous when he saw that it wasn’t. It had just been a dream. A silly, stupid,  _ ridiculous  _ dream. He looked down at the end of the bed where Claire’s head rested asleep on the small bed Benny had brought in two days prior. He watched her tiny chest rise and fall before looking back at the window. It was still dark outside, so Dean knew that it had to be early. He got up and silently made his bed before walking over to the door and sliding his boots on. He made sure his key was in his jeans pocket before grabbing the jacket Charlie had given him and tossing it on.

He looked back at Claire and felt relief as he saw she was still in a deep slumber, before turning around and opening the door quietly. He closed it and then walked off his porch, staring at the cabins that circled around him before glancing at the field in the center that had a fresh blanket of twinkling snow. It was calm and quiet, the moon shining down brightly on the pack. He looked up at his old friend and smiled, feeling an odd mix of comfort and familiarity wash over him. He knew that no matter what, he could always rely on Moon to be a constant variable; a never changing entity that was in Dean’s life. No matter where Dean went in life, Moon was always there. Would always be there, until the very end.

He sighed before following the shoveled pathway that went around the entire field and stopped when he found a bench. He wiped off the new snow with his sleeve before sitting down, tucking his hands into his pockets. It had all been a dream and Dean had known that from the very beginning, the moment his eyes opened. However, it still. . .  _ Felt  _ real. Almost as if he could feel the ash on his fingertips. He pulled his hands out of his pockets slowly, opening them and glancing at his fingers that were already turning a soft pink from the cold.

He tucked his hands back into his pockets, a puffy cloud forming around his lips the moment he exhaled. He looked up at the stars, his eyes becoming glassy with tears. What was Sammy doing right now? Was he looking back at the same night sky as Dean was? Or was he sound asleep in the warmth of their den? Had he found a mate yet? Had he already forgotten about Dean? He knew the thought was ridiculous the moment it fleeted across his mind, but— there it was again, the little gnat  _ bugging _ at the back of his mind— he had been gone for so long. He knew memories would only last for a small amount of time before they got fuzzy.

A new smell wafted in the air and broke Dean of his thoughts. He looked around to see where the source of the scent— strawberries and pineapples— came from before he heard a small  _ crunch _ in the snow. He looked over and froze as he saw curly hair, that was blonde and brown, glowing in the moonlight. A pair of soft blue eyes met his and he took in the other Omegas appearance. She wore a thick jacket that puffed out almost like a marshmallow and slim jeans, a pair of ankle boots on her feet. Dean also noticed the small freckle that was in between her eyes, right above where her eyebrows began. He couldn’t help but feel as if he had seen her before.

“Sorry if I startled you,” she spoke softly as she made her way over to where he was sitting, wiping off the snow before sitting down on the opposite side of the bench. Dean looked her over once more before shrugging.

“It’s okay,” he shrugged. “I was already a little on edge, so that probably didn’t help either.”

She chuckled at that one and a small smile kissed her lips. “Yeah, I understand,” she sighed as she looked up at the sky before looking back at him. “Oh, my name is Jess by the way.” she said as she held her hand out. He shook it firmly.

“Dean.” he gave her a smile. Her eyes widened. 

“You’re from the Omega ring too?” she asked softly. Dean tilted his head before it all came back, hitting him hard like a brick. He had seen glimpses of her through the window or when they had a public event going on, like the execution. He had seen her multiple times but had never had the opportunity to actually speak with her.

“I am.” he mumbled as he looked at the ground. He wondered if the Alphas had taken a special liking to her too, as Alistair did to him. He didn’t dare ask that though. This was a new camp, a new beginning for them both. He glanced over at her and gave a small smile. “We’re two of the lucky ones, huh?”

Jess smiled shyly as she tucked some of her hair behind her ear. “I suppose so.” she sighed before moving slightly closer to Dean. She rested her hand on her lap, staring out at the fresh snow. “I wonder if the others are okay.” she said after a few moments of silence. “I hope they get to see the soft snow. It’s beautiful at this hour.”

He stared at the snow too, biting his lip as he wasn’t quite sure how to respond. She seemed to still have so much hope inside her even after such a dark thing happened and he realized she oddly reminded him of Sam. He let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. “I’m just glad it’s over for us.” he said finally as he faced her. “I heard that the Alpha plans on making another trip to the new camp once they find it, but. . .” 

“You think it’ll be pointless.” Jess finished and he gave a small nod. She simply shrugged and looked up at the stars. “I don’t know if it will be or not,” she admitted. “but I think that as long as there’s a will, there’s a way. Their defenses may be stronger than before. I know they aren’t that stupid.” she looked over her shoulder at Dean. “However, I know that they’re shorthanded considering Azazel was killed. So there’s only one Alpha.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Azazel is  _ dead _ ?”

“Oh, yeah,” she said as a smile graced her lips. “I watched our new Alpha tear him to pieces. I know I shouldn’t be smiling, but after being at that camp for nine years. . .” her eyes watered. “I can’t deny that I enjoyed every second of hearing that bastard scream.”

Dean sighed as he rubbed his jeans. “You know, most Omegas and Betas would probably judge you for that,” he said and gazed in her direction. “but I am right there with you.” he sighed, looking back out at Moon, who was resting in the sky. “I know Alistair’s day is coming. He doesn’t have much time left on the clock. I just hope that I’ll get to be there,” he inhaled deeply. “and see it first hand.”

They sat in comfortable silence for about twenty minutes before both him and Jess were shivering. He stood up before helping her to her own feet. She gave him a big smile, squeezing his hand. “I’m glad I’m not alone here.” she said softly. “If you ever need to talk, or even just want some hot cocoa,” she pointed towards the cabin that was directly across the field from Dean’s. “I’m right there.” she promised. He felt his lips twisted into a grin.

“I might take you up on that offer someday.” he said as he jabbed a thumb behind him. “The same offer stands with me. I live in that cabin so feel free to chat with me any time you’d like.”

They spoke for a few more moments before Dean offered to walk her home. They said goodnight one last time before she closed her cabin and he stepped off her porch. He glanced up at Moon and gave him a wry smile. “Don’t worry, old friend,” he said as he walked. “I promise, she isn’t replacing you.”

With that being said, Dean made his way back to his cabin and entered. He shrugged his jacket off before toeing his boots off too and locking the door. He glanced over at Claire before getting into bed and covering up with blankets. For once in a long time, he actually felt safe. Within seconds he was drifting into a dreamless and calm slumber, no nightmares to accompany him. Only sea blue eyes and the smell of strawberries and pineapples.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _And perhaps the very fact the moon could never have the sun was the reason that she loved him so_. — o.h

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prepare to be hit in the feels. It was bound to happen.

“Come  _ on _ ! You’re gonna miss it!” Claire whined as she tugged on Dean’s hand mercilessly. He rolled his eyes and he grabbed his jacket off of the hook. 

“Yes, because I  _ totally _ want to go to some Halloween party for kids.” he muttered. He glanced down to see Claire glaring at him and he held up his hands. “Alright, fair enough.” he chuckled before looking at his watch that Charlie had given to him as a gift. “Claire, what time does the party even start?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. “Because it’s only three-thirty.”

Claire rolled her eyes while she flattened out the sheet she was wearing, complimentary of Donna, who said she would make the cutest ghost. “It starts at five but obviously we need to get there early so we can nab all the  _ good _ candy.” she said as she crossed her arms. He watched her intently. However Amelia was able to give Claire a good idea of what Halloween was all about, he would never know. Although he knew being locked up in a cabin 24/7 probably helped.

“Alright, yeah. Just know that we aren’t staying past seven. You still have a curfew, pup.”

He heard a whine escape from under the ghost mask— aka a pillowcase with two holes in it— as Claire reached out for the small basket. “Come  _ on _ Dean. It’s a holiday! Can’t I stay up until ten?”

He shook his head. “The latest I’m willing to let you stay up is eight.” he watched her intently.

“Nine-thirty?” 

“Eight-thirty.” he said with a firm voice.

“How about nine? That way we can meet in the middle.” she said, looking up at him with innocent blue eyes. He let his head fall back and sighed, exasperatedly.

“Alright, you’ve gotta point.” he admitted. “No later than nine.  _ Got it _ ?” he asked and pointed a finger at her. He didn’t need to see her mouth to know she was grinning from ear to ear.

“Got it.” she chirped.

He shook his head before opening the door, the cold and nippy air biting at his cheeks. He put a hand on Claire’s back and followed after her, the door closing behind him. They walked down the stairs and he looked around at all the other pups that wore a variety of costumes. One was a princess, the other a cowboy. He watched as a pup with a box around his head jumped through the snow. All of them were walking towards the nursery (he had been doubtful, but Jody had told him they were doing it there since no Omega was due any time soon and the youngest pup was two years old), when he felt Claire’s hand leave his as she ran over to a young girl that had dark black hair and tan skin. She was wearing a black dress and a pointy hat, a broomstick in one hand and a pillowcase in the other.

“Kaia!” he heard Claire beam as he watched the pup hug the other. Dean looked up to see a woman who looked like an older version of Kaia smile down at Claire before putting her hand on Kaia’s shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze. Her hair ended down at her hips and was in a long braid that had white and red beads throughout. She was wearing a tan leather jacket and dark jeans with snow boots on her feet. Claire grinned back at her as the woman spoke; though what she said, Dean had no idea.

“Hey!” he heard a light voice chirp behind him and no he definitely did  _ not _ yelp with surprise. He let out a breath and turned around, his eyes landing on Charlie. Her hair was down in her signature red curls, her bangs covering her eyebrows. Her nose was a light shade of pink and her green eyes were filled with amusement. She reached up and gave his arm a light squish. “Sorry,” she chuckled. “Cas said that one of these days he’s gonna put a bell on me.”

“If he won’t, I will,” a sultry voice said and the smell of mint and pine filled Dean’s senses. He looked over to see a beautiful woman with wild curly hair and deep brown eyes, matching her skin quite nicely, looking back at him. She wore a black leather jacket and a black v-neck tucked into high waist jeans. She walked over to where Charlie was, smile so minute that from far away, it would look as if though her face were clear. 

Charlie rolled her eyes before holding a hand out to the Beta. “Dean, this is Billie. She’s sort of like Castiel’s body guard.”

“Something like that,” Billie said as she looked from Charlie to Dean. “Mostly just help him with what he needs, making sure he stays in line, all those fun things.” she said flatly, glancing over at the food hall. Dean awkwardly looked from her over to Charlie.

“Are you needing something, Charlie?” he asked hesitantly. He felt comfortable around the redheaded Beta, but the new one set his teeth on edge. 

“I was just checking in on ya,” she said with a smile. “seeing how you were doing and things. Making sure you were still good on supplies. All that jazz.”

“Um, yeah,” he said, making a mental checklist and going over it in his head. “Claire and I should be good until next Friday.” 

“Okay, good.” Charlie looked over at the banquet hall before snapping her fingers. “Oh! I almost forgot. I wanted to see if you were coming to the Halloween party tonight?” she looked up at him with a small smile.

“Um, yeah, I’ll be there to watch Claire.” 

“Oh, no, no, no,” the Beta wiggled her finger. “Not the one for the pups. I’m talking  _ Castiel’s  _ halloween party.”

He frowned and tilted his head. “The Alpha throws a Halloween party?” he asked incredulously. “I mean, isn’t that a little silly? It’s just another night out of the year.”

“Pfft!” Charlie waved her hand at him. “First off, he throws one every year. It’s sort of something that the pups can look forward to. Also, it’s more of a costume masquerade party of sorts. Everyone is invited to go.” she said with a smile. “Come on, it’ll be fun!”

He shifted on his feet a little bit, biting his lip as he glanced over at the food hall. “I dunno, Charlie. Parties aren’t really my thing and I. . .”  _ haven’t socialized in years. _ He looked at her. “Come to think of it, I’ve never been to a party.” 

Charlie gasped in horror before shaking her head rigorously. “Okay that settles it then. You  _ are _ coming to my cabin and you  _ are _ going to the party.” she said firmly. Dean opened his mouth to argue when Billie cut in.

“She won’t let it go until you say ‘yes’.”

He looked over at her and inhaled deeply before his shoulders sagged in defeat. “Fine.” he sighed as he looked up at the clouds. What’s the worst that could happen?

x

“Come on, Cassie!” Balthazar’s muffled voice pleaded as he dug through the closet. He appeared with a fitting black suit. “Where’s your Halloween spirit, darling?”

Castiel looked away from the window and raised an eyebrow at him, his lips puckered into a scowl. “I’ve never been one for Halloween. You  _ know _ this, Balthazar.”

“Yes, but then why hold a party, hm? Isn’t it rude to host a party but not be there to actually  _ host _ ?” Balthazar insisted and tossed the suit on to the large bed where the Alpha slept. He appeared a few seconds later with black dress shoes. “It’ll be  _ fun _ .”

“Balthazar, I don’t have time for ‘fun’.” Castiel hissed, turning on his heel, stepping in front of the closet doorway and blocking his brother from getting out. “We  _ need _ to find where Alistair took the other Omegas. We need to track them down so we can set them  _ free _ .” 

“Oh,  _ Cassie _ ,” Balthazar said dramatically before sneaking under the Alpha’s arm and moving to the bed. He set down a tie and then turned and looked at him. “You can’t do all the saving in the world in one night. You’ve been working this case since the night we got back from the Omega ring. The only time you stopped was to check in on the new Omega. You know. . .” he glanced up with a small smirk. “ _ Dean _ .” 

Castiel gave him a glare but said nothing as he looked at the suit on the bed. “I’m  _ not _ going and that’s final.” he growled. He heard his brother sigh heavily before tossing something wrapped in paper onto the bed. 

“Fine,” he said as he held his hands up. “However, if you do change your mind, your costume is on the bed. Oh, and darling,” he stopped at the door and looked at Castiel. “Do shave while you’re at it. Your age is showing through that beard.” he sighed before disappearing and closing the door shut. Castiel kept his eyes fixed on the door before Balthazar’s scent faded. He looked over at the mirror and stared at his body. The stitches were healed up, leaving a faded scar along his side but that was minimal. He looked back at the door and then down at the suit. 

The entire thing was black with silver trimming, from the blazer to the dress shirt to the pants and finally to the shoes. Even the cuff links were a coal black. He scoffed as he picked it up. When was the last time he wore a suit to anything? It had to have been when Bobby and Ellen had mated, as he was the one who officiated it. That had been  _ years _ ago. He let his fingers slowly trace the buttons on the blazer before he eyed the object wrapped in black tissue paper. He picked it up, unwrapped it, staring at the beautiful mask that became exposed. An embossed and finely detailed pewter casting mask in the form of a wolf. He could see each strand of fur that was carved into the metal, could see the small specks that were engraved on the nose. It was truly beautiful in every sense of the word.

Castiel turned it over delicately in his hands, staring at the mask that ended at the snout before turning it over again. The way the fur was carved, it looked like the wolf mask was snarling almost and he couldn’t help but think back to all the times his face must have mirrored that look during battles. Two thick leather strands hung on either side and he let his thumb trace the smooth edges. He set the mask down before fingering the lines of his tattoo on his wrist absentmindedly, along the crescent moon that had a paw print inside it. 

He let his hands fall before turning around and going into the bathroom, the door slamming shut behind him.

x

  
  


Dean stared at the golden wolf mask that Charlie handed him, his fingers skimming the carvings slowly. It was beautiful, reminding him of ancient egypt with the warmer alloys, the dense pressings, and how the eyes were carved out. It was completely gold except for the black edges around the eye holes and the nose of the snout. Fine lines of fur were etched around the eyes along with distinct patches of fur around the ears and on the snout. The ears were long and curved at the end, the top of the mask pointy as single pieces of fur stood up. It was beautifully archaic and nothing like Dean had ever seen before.

“D’you like it?” Charlie asked from above him. Dean glanced up and his eyes widened. She was wearing a wolf mask too, oddly resembling her wolf form. It was detailed and embossed just like his own, except for the ears had an orange tint to them while the rest of the face was a mix of soft grey and white. She wore a flamboyant shirt that hung low on her chest, a beautiful blue and gold color, and a pair of black leathered pants that were high waisted. Her heels also black and a belt cinched around her waist. Silver bracelets hung around her wrists swaying when her hands moved. Her hair was in a high ponytail.

“I-I do,” he said with a nod before gently putting the mask down. “I see there’s a theme here, yeah?”

Charlie looked at herself in the mirror, adjusting her outfit here and there. “Not really. The Pack warriors wear the wolf masks and the other Pack members choose whatever costume they want.” she shrugged simply. He felt a frown tug at his lips as he looked down at the mask. 

“I. . . I’m not a pack warrior.” he said as he looked up at her. She exhaled deeply and nodded, walking over to the bed that Dean sat on and sat down, grabbing the mask and holding it tenderly.

“I know,” she said softly. “but Jo was.”

He looked at her and felt a sudden vibe of sadness radiate off Charlie. His gaze moved to the mask and his heart ached. “Charlie, I’m sorry.”

She looked up at him and gave a weak smile, tears pooling her eyes as she waved her hand. “It’s okay. I mean, I should talk about it eventually, right?” she sighed as she grabbed the left strap of her shirt and pulled it back. Dean’s eyes widened when he saw a deep scar that resembled a bite mark. The bite was small, petite, almost like a female’s. He stared at Charlie a moment and that’s when his brain made the connection. 

“She was your mate.” he stated bluntly, wincing at his words. Charlie nodded, sniffling.

“Yeah,” she huffed quietly. “I mean, it’s normally frowned upon in our society. Y’know. Beta and Beta, Alpha and Alpha, Omega and Omega. But she didn’t care.” she sniffled, her finger tracing the mask’s snout. “She didn’t care as long as we were happy. When I, um, when I told my pack about who I wanted to mate. . . they abandoned me. Left me to be a lone wolf. However, Jo’s pack,” she looked around. “They were a lot more accepting.

“Castiel welcomed me with open arms. He blessed our mating. We knew we couldn't have pups and yeah it sucked, but. . . We still had our own family. Ellen and Bobby,” she sighed. “Castiel, Balthazar, Anna. Jody and Donna too. It was,” a sad smile spread across her face. “It was perfect. Until it wasn’t. But that’s okay.” she nodded and looked up at Dean, wiping a few stray tears away. “Jo knew what she signed up for. We both knew and we embraced the fact that she might not make it back.”

He felt overwhelmed with sympathy for her, but a little hint of awe too. When a wolf’s mate dies, it could be detrimental to the wolf; lethal even. It would be like losing half of themselves. Depending on how strong the bond  _ was _ , the wolf may or may not be able to survive. He was amazed at how well Charlie was handling it. “I really am sorry for your loss, Charlie.” he said softly. She didn’t say anything, instead opting to pull him into a bear hug. 

“Thanks,” she sniffled before sighing and sitting back. As she moved back, Dean noticed a small tattoo on her wrist. She looked at where he was glancing before smiling. “Oh, this?” 

He nodded.

“It’s what all the pack warriors have; the mark that lets us connect deeply with our inner wolf.” she gives Dean a better look at it: a crescent moon with a paw print inside the curve. He traced it slowly. 

“Is it magic?” he asked curiously. Charlie bounced her head from side to side.

“Of sorts.” she nodded. “There was a special ritual that the pack warriors had to go through. First, on the night of a full moon, we had to kill a goat and dip it’s head into nacho cheese. Then, we had to pour pigs blood over it and start singing ‘What Is Love’ in latin, and then we-“ she stopped before breaking into a fit of laughter at the look of horror on Dean’s face. “I’m kidding!” she giggled. 

Dean glared at her as he crossed his arms and she waved her hand, wiping a tear away. “Not funny.”

She snorted but nodded. “Alright,” she sighed. “When Castiel’s father died and he became Alpha of the pack, he had to pick new pack warriors that would follow him. Bobby, Ellen, Donna, and Jody were Chuck’s old pack warriors. Balthazar and Anna had gotten the mark from Chuck, so they were already a part of the new generation. Ellen had trained Jo her entire life to be a warrior,” she smiled fondly, touching her mating bite. “so she was practically born into the role too. Castiel picked myself, Billie, and Benny to be added to the list.” she gave a shy smile. 

“Donna and Jody retired after we were picked. They had been warriors for  _ years _ before I had come to the pack, and since Chuck’s reign ended, they wanted to settle down and help out around here. Bobby and Ellen are pretty much in the same boat, though sometimes they’ll help patrol the border when Castiel is out on missions or is wounded. So I guess right now, it’s just Balthazar, Anna, Benny, Billie, Castiel, and myself,” she said softly. “Bobby’s helping patrol for the time being since. . . Well, you know,” she waved her hand before clearing her throat and clapping. “How about we quit talking about the boring sad stuff and move on to the party, huh?”

Dean gave her a soft smile. He still had so many questions— like how the tattoo made her powers special or if the tattoo really even played a part of that— but he could tell from the look on her face that she wasn’t really wanting to think about it anymore for the night. He gave a nod and slowly stood up, fixing his sleeve. “Sounds good to me.”

x

Dean walked behind Charlie as they entered probably the biggest cabin on the campsite; the food hall. There were streamers and halloween decorations hanging by the entrance as they walked up, Moon high in the sky and watching over everything. Donna was holding a movie night at the nursery for all the pups so that the other Omegas and Betas could have some time for themselves, which Dean found awfully sweet. It had been hard for him to let Claire go away for the night, but he trusted Donna and knew she was in good hands. He looked down to make sure his outfit was okay— a pure white suit with gold decal on the sleeves and pant legs— before he slid his mask on in place, clasping it around his head securely. He looked over at Charlie before they walked inside together. The first scent was a smell of candy. He couldn’t narrow it down to any specific type, just more sweet as a whole. The second thing that hit his nose was the smell of sweat. Those were the only things that he could identify because of all the mixed scents in the building. Loud music was playing, some new age kind of shit that Dean couldn’t understand because the bass was so loud. He looked over to his side to see Charlie smiling and waving at someone.

She patted his shoulder before disappearing for a moment and the second she was out of sight, Dean felt sheer anxiety wash through his entire body. He looked around for the redhead before his eyes landed on a white tablecloth. He pushed his way through, reaching to it before gripping the edge tightly with both hands. How  _ stupid _ could he have been? Socializing with a Beta here and there was one thing, but a whole ass party with the entire pack there? It was reckless of him to think he’d be up for it. These people knew each other, had known each other for  _ years _ . Dean? He’d only been here two weeks and only knew maybe five people, six at most.

He inhaled deeply, seeing a bowl of water with a ladle, and walked towards it. He poured himself a glass, gulping it down in one move before setting the cup aside and exhaling deeply. He looked around, trying to find Charlie, but all he saw were a bunch of different masks. A ghoul, a vampire, a witch, a zombie. . . They all blended together and as Dean tried to make his way through the crowd, he realized that the room was starting to spin, he could hear the thudding sounds of his heart. He looked everywhere before seeing Moon peek at him through a door but then the door closed. Dean turned and started making his way to the door, pushing and shoving past people as he felt the cold door handle. He twisted his wrist and pushed on it  _ hard _ before practically falling out of the room and landing face first into the snow. 

He gasped for air while he rolled over onto his back, thankful for the cold snow that surrounded his body. He felt his chest rise and fall quickly as he tried to catch his breath, Moon beaming over him in the dark night sky. Dean finally managed to slow his breathing down after a few moments, closing his eyes and relishing in the quietness of the night. Never again, would he go to a party with Charlie. He liked her, but he was not anywhere  _ near _ the social butterfly that she was. He stayed there until he had no choice but to move once he started shivering. He stood up and wiped his sleeve off before inhaling deeply, walking over to the bench he had been the night before. He sat down and looked up at Moon, wishing that he had been asleep by now.

“Parties aren’t your thing?” a gravelly voice asked, disturbing the night’s silence. Dean looked up at where the source came from and his green eyes met familiar blue ones he hadn’t seen in a while. He felt a shiver run down his spine and a small ounce of slick escape him while he took in the Alpha’s appearance. Completely black suit with a beautifully carved mask that was made of pure metal. The only color that could be seen was his deep cerulean eyes and his soft pink lips. It reminded Dean a lot of his wolf form.

Dean let a mixture of a scoff and a laugh escape him as he looked back over at the snow, thankful his mask was still on so the Alpha couldn’t see him blush. “Um, no. Not really.” he admitted as he folded his hands in his lap. He felt the Alpha’s presence become closer and watched as he sat down on the bench next to him. “You?” 

He could see his lips quirk into a small smile. “Not really. They’re more Balthazar’s than anything.” he said, his eyes filled with mirth. They glanced over at him and Dean couldn’t understand how someone’s eyes could be  _ that _ fucking blue. 

“Yeah,” he said softly as he looked at the Alpha’s chin. “You shaved.” he frowned as he noticed the stubble on it. Castiel’s eyes widened, showing his eyebrows raised, before giving a curt nod. 

“Yes, per Balthazar’s request.” he nodded as he looked up at the sky. Dean tried not to think about how he had the sudden desire to lick up Castiel’s neck to his chin before kissing his plump lips. He looked down at his hands. 

_ Great conversation, Winchester _ .

“So, why hold a party if you don’t care for them?” Dean inquired. “Isn’t that sort of like a parrot box or something?”

It was Castiel’s turn to look at him questioningly. “Parrot box? Do you mean Paradox?” he asked with amusement. The Omega blushed and he couldn’t help but chuckle. “In answer to your question, I think it is. But then again, I’m sort of a walking, talking,  _ parrot box _ ,” he said with a sly grin, “myself.”

Dean blushed even more. “Shut up!” he mumbled as he looked up at Moon to hide his embarrassment.

Castiel chuckled before staring at his own hands. “Besides,” he sighed. “Everyone here has had it really rough in the past,” he said the last part as he looked at Dean. The Omega decided not to look too deep into that. “So even if I don’t personally enjoy parties and social gatherings, I host them because I know that they can be fun and it makes everyone happy.”

Dean looked at him with a twinkle in his eyes. “I think that’s awesome.” he said softly. Castiel squinted his eyes as he bit the inside of his cheek before eventually nodding.

“I suppose so.” he said with a soft sigh before standing up and straightening his tie. Dean expected him to walk off, back to the food hall or maybe back to his cabin. So imagine his surprise when Dean saw the Alpha hold his hand out to him. He looked up at Castiel quizzically and the Alpha nodded towards the food hall. He looked over and saw that the door was open and a slow song could be heard echoing through the night. Dean looked back at the Alpha. “Care to dance?”

Without hesitation, he grabbed his hand and allowed himself to be led, feeling Moon’s gaze upon them as they began to slowly dance the night away.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _The moon is a loyal companion._  
>  _It never leaves. It’s always there, watching, steadfast, knowing us in our light and dark moments, changing forever just as we do. Every day it’s a different version of itself. Sometimes weak and wan, sometimes strong and full of light. The moon understands what it means to be human.  
>  Uncertain. Alone. Cratered by imperfections. _― Tahereh Mafi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know my schedule says Tuesdays and Fridays, but my parents came down to visit this past week so I disappeared for a hot minute to spend time with them because I miss them like crazy!! Anyways, here's chapter 6!! Enjoy!
> 
> Please note the lore in this chapter is 100% original and of my own creation :)

_ Embers littered the air once more, twirling around as the smell of smoke invaded every sense he had. He turned around and looked at his cabin, watching in horror as the roof made a loud creaking noise, sending a cloud of embers every direction, like hornets. He heard a loud scream, a blood curdling scream, come from the house and he felt his chest collapse. “Claire!” he cried out for her, running towards the window. He saw tiny hands appear and grab the edge of the window ledge where the glass had shattered. He was almost there when something hard hit him in the chest and sent him flying backwards. _

_ He landed so fast that he ended up rolling a few times, tasting the charred grass and smoke. He groaned as he slowly got up onto his forearms, gasping for air. He looked over at the window and saw a tiny face come up, but it wasn’t Claire’s.  _

_ “Dean!” _

_ “Sammy!” Dean got up and started running again, his hand reaching out for his little brother. “I’m coming, Sammy, I’m almost there!” he yelled, his feet thudding against the ground. He was maybe three feet away from touching Sam’s hand when the invisible force hit him hard in the chest again, sending him backwards. He landed with a hard thud this time, everything from his waist down going numb. _

_ “Dean!” he heard his brother sob. “Dean, don’t forget me!”  _

_ “Never!” he yelled before the roof made another creaking noise. Dean managed to get to his knees just as he watched the roof crumble and cave in, the house going down with it. _

_ So did Sam. _

“Sam!” Dean screamed, his eyes wide as he sat up quickly, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead. His breath rapid, his eyes almost bugging out of his head while he looked around the cabin. Everything was still perfectly in touch, but something was off and Dean didn’t know what it was. 

He shook his head, wiping away the few tears that had pooled in his eyes, and stood up. He stretched his back before slowly making his way over to the small counter where the coffee pot sat and turned the machine on. He turned to ask Claire what she wanted for breakfast when his body went stiff and he realized that’s what was off.

Claire was gone.

Without hesitation, Dean grabbed his jacket and slid it on before quickly lacing on his boots— almost falling in the process— and opening the door. He ran off his porch and was about to yell her name when a snowball hit him right in the face. He stopped and looked to see who threw it before he heard a mischievous giggle. He saw a wild mane of curly hair glowing in the sunlight behind a poorly built snowman and he felt his body relax. 

“Claire,” he said with slight annoyance but mostly relief. She giggled and came out from behind the snowman, looking up at him with big eyes.

“Good morning!” she chirped before running over and hugging his leg. He sighed and cradled the back of her head. She slowly moved away before looking behind said leg. “Can I go play with Kaia now that you’re awake?” she asked and gave him a puppy dog look. “Pretty please?”

Dean looked over his shoulder at the younger girl who waved happily at him before seeing another young girl join Kaia. She had wavy brown hair and her skin was a little darker than the snow, though not by much. “Who is that?”

“Krissy.” Claire said simply before looking up at him. “ _Pretty_ _please_?” she asked, sticking her lower lip out. Dean sighed and nodded his head.

“Alright, yeah, fine.” he mumbled, watching her clap and say ‘thank you’ before running off. He sighed and made his way back into the cabin, closing the door and making way to the coffee pot once again, feeling a burst of pleasure in his chest as he saw the dark liquid gathering. He grabbed a mug from one of the cupboards and poured some coffee into it, wrapping his cold hands around the quickly warming cup. He looked out the window, sipping on the warm liquid every so often as he watched all the pups run around and play. It reminded him of a simpler time when he and Sam would play around like that.

Sam. . . That was the third time that Dean had had that nightmare in the past week. It seemed that every time he slept, he’d have the same dream: it was here at the cabins, and everything would be on fire. The only difference would be who he had to save but would inevitably fail. He sipped his coffee again before being interrupted by a knock on the door. Dean sighed and set it down before walking around and opening it, feeling annoyance run down his spine. 

“Charlie, I swear to God if you tell me to watch ‘Lord of the Rings’  _ one _ more time, I’m literal-“ he stopped when his eyes settled on familiar blue ones. “Oh.” he said softly as he took in the Alpha’s appearance. Castiel was wearing a blue v-neck sweater with a white shirt underneath and dark jeans. His hair was fluffed up and disheveled as always, his eyes filled with amusement.

“She’s been trying to get you to watch that too?” he raised an eyebrow. Dean couldn’t help but laugh as he gave a slight nod.

“She got me to watch the first movie, but I just can’t get hooked. She threatened me with some kind of stick-“

“Her ‘Gandalf Staff’ replica, I believe.” he corrected and Dean snorted before opening the door so the Alpha could come in. As he walked past him, his scent filled Dean’s nose and he quickly had to switch to mouth breathing. 

“So, how can I help you?” Dean asked as he shut the door and Castiel looked up at him, his eyebrows shooting up.

“I just. . . I wanted to see how you were adapting to this.” Castiel said as he moved to the small table and sat down in the chair. “I also wanted to see how Claire was doing. Her and I were having a nice chat the other day. She seems to enjoy it here but. . .”

Dean gave him a curious look, making a mental note to talk to Claire about bugging the Alpha. “But?”

The Alpha bit his lip, a look of apprehension washing over his face, before it quickly disappeared with a sighed. “She’s worried about you. Said you weren’t sleeping easily. Kept waking up to nightmares.” he replied wearily before looking over to Dean. “So I wanted to make sure that not only are you adapting well, but that you’re okay.” he said the last part softly, his gaze slowly moving from Dean to the window and then back. The Omega let out a shy laugh as he rubbed his arm, feeling the tips of his ears burn.

“I’m okay as I can be, given the circumstances.” he murmured, looking up at Castiel. How the hell was he supposed to respond?  _ Actually, I’ve been having nightmares about this place burning and not being able to save my little brother who’s taller than me and also seeing the shitty Alpha who held me prisoner for God knows how long and tortured me _ . “And as for the nightmares, there’s been a few but it hasn’t all been bad.”

He looked over at the coffee pot and jabbed his thumb towards it but Castiel shook his head as he waved his hand. “I probably shouldn’t.” he said with a crooked smile. “I’ve already had two pots and it’s only nine in the morning.” he chuckled. 

“Probably for the best then,” the Omega nodded and grabbed his mug, taking another sip, glancing at the Alpha when he wasn’t looking. Now that it was bright out— and Cas wasn’t wearing a wolf mask— Dean could really take in his full beauty. His hair framed his face well, his jaw chiseled out and looking  _ so  _ delicious. . . 

Dean knew Cas was attractive in every way possible: his hair, his thin nose, his plump lips, his voice, all of it. His smell was absolutely amazing and there was just  _ something _ about it that had Dean’s inner wolf writhing; practically  _ begging _ to have him get on all fours and present himself for his Alpha.

_ His Alpha _ .

Dean felt a shiver run down his body and he quickly chugged the rest of his coffee so that he had a reason to turn his back on Cas. He cleared his throat, trying to pull it together and ignore the slick that was forming, before spinning on his heel. He went to give the Alpha a weak smile but stopped when his nose almost brushed against the Alpha’s own. 

How the hell had he moved so quickly without making a sound?

Dean wasn’t able to think anything after that as within seconds, their scents were starting to mingle together while the Alpha studied him with soft eyes. “I have other people I need to see today,” he said softly. “But I want you to know, my door is always open if you need to talk.” With how close they were, he could feel the Alpha’s breath fan against his lower lip. He chanced a glance to peek up at the Alpha through his eyelashes and he could have sworn he heard the Alpha’s breath hitch. “You’re safe here, Dean. No one will hurt you as long as I’m around, I give you my word.”

Dean felt tears making an appearance in his eyes as he slowly nodded, his senses becoming overwhelmed with the sudden smell of the Alpha. It cleared every concern, worry, fear, or thought he’d had throughout the morning until the only thing left on his mind was just  _ Cas _ . “Thank you,” he whispered, sinking into those deep blue eyes, wanting nothing more than to just become lost in them.

Cas stared at him, his pink tongue appearing just under the whites of his front teeth. Dean saw as it skimmed out across his lower lip absentmindedly. “Dean, can you promise me something?”

“Anything,” he said, quicker than he would like to admit.

“If you need anything, even if it’s just an ear to listen or a shoulder to cry on. . .” he hesitated and Dean could have  _ sworn _ Cas’s cheeks were becoming rosey. “Or even if you just want to feel less lonely. . . You’ll come to me instead of dealing with these issues alone.” he pleaded softly, “Because you aren’t alone, Dean. Not anymore.” 

He focused a steady gaze on Dean and the Omega swallowed thickly. Feeling himself spiral more into those pretty blues, he gave a small nod. “Okay,” he whispered as he maintained eye contact, mentally cheering himself on for keeping his voice steady. “I promise.”

Castiel dawned the softest smile Dean had ever seen on the Alpha, and a secret part of him (some may even call it selfish) wished that the Alpha reserved the smile just for  _ him _ , but he also knew that that was highly unlikely. He wasn’t even sure if the Alpha was mated; though so far, he’d never seen an Omega or Beta draped across his arm, so who knows? He would have to ask Charlie if Cas had ever looked at her with the special twinkle in his eyes that was there right now, focused at Dean. He would also ask if it was a common thing for Castiel’s pupils to dilate as much as they were, and if he ever got this close to her mouth and if—

“Good,” Castiel said, his eyes looking down at Dean’s lips and damn him, he was staring right back at Cas’s. He purposely let his tongue swipe against his bottom lip, his entire body practically screaming  _ kissmekissmekissmekissme  _ when bringing his eyes to meet Castiel’s. The Alpha inhaled deeply before moving back and just like that, the moment was gone and Dean felt like a kicked puppy who had just been told no. He probably looked like it too, if the Alpha’s look of remorse said anything. “I do need to go. But my door is open any time.” he said, turning around and walking to the door.

He stilled for a moment and before Dean could say anything, the Alpha was back in his space and yep that was  _ definitely  _ a pair of soft lips touching his forehead tenderly. It happened so quickly, Dean only managed a whimper before they were gone.

And, so was his Alpha.

x

Reckless. That had been completely and utterly reckless. Castiel stared at the ceiling, his hands resting on his toned stomach, watching his ceiling fan spin around in leisure circles. Dancing with the Omega had been one thing, inviting him to his cabin was another; but  _ kissing  _ him? Granted, it was on the forehead, but the moment Cas had felt the warm and sweet skin under his lips, it was like a switch had flipped inside him. As soon as it had happened, he knew he had to leave there, quickly, before he lost the last ounce of self control he had and did something he couldn’t take back. A loud sigh escaped him as he sat up on his forearms, looking out the window of his bedroom and at the snow.

He had let it go too far, had let himself loosen up around Dean and the worst part? He didn’t regret it. He even  _ liked  _ it. Liked how flustered the Omega got, liked the feeling of his skin against his lips, the smell of ginger and spice surrounding him like a warm blanket. He inhaled deeply and a groan passed his lips, the faint smell of the Omega filling his senses. For the past hour, he has been holed up in his room, willing for the achingly hard erection between his thighs to go down, and yet here he is. He glared down at it, gritting his teeth before standing up. He was  _ not _ going to let his biology run his life. It wasn’t the first time he had smelled slick from an Omega; but for some reason, when he first caught whiff of Dean’s, he had to fight his primal instinct with every ounce of his will. Especially because of just how sweet and delicious it smelled.

A knock on the door brought Castiel’s attention back to the present time and before he could do anything, it swung open and the smell of margaritas and leather invaded. He growled with annoyance as his brother came in, smiling widely at him. “Ah, Cassie, I m-“ he stopped in place as he looked at Castiel who was shirtless, disheveled, and sporting a hardcore boner. “Bad time?”

Castiel stood and grabbed his bathrobe from the closet, snarling as he tied it tightly and stormed over to Balthazar, shoving him out of the room and following, slamming the door closed behind him. “How many  _ times _ . . . do I have to  _ tell _ you. . . to  _ knock _ ?” Castiel hissed as he slapped Balthazar in the arm each time he paused. Balthazar simply laughed, waving his hand.

“Cassie, I knocked three times. Not my fault you had a certain  _ Omega _ on the b— Ow!” it was his turn to hiss as he felt Castiel hit his chest hard. “Hey, just because you’re the Alpha doesn’t mean you get to hit me for no reason!” he snapped. Castiel’s eyes flashed a dangerous red as he stepped forward, clearly not in the mood for games or objections and Balthazar’s eyes flashed a bold yellow as he stepped forward as well.

Anna quickly went in between both of them, putting her hand on each chest. “Stop it!” she said firmly, glaring at them both. “Both of you stop it. Right now.” 

“As much as I’d love to see a good fight,” a snarky yet smooth voice came from behind Balthazar. “we need to talk business.” 

Castiel took a big whiff of the air and his senses flooded with lollipops and taffy. Balthazar moved and Castiel looked down at his brother whom he hadn’t seen in many moons. “Gabriel.”

The Beta looked over at him and smirked, holding his hand up flat. “Hey, bro.”

x

_ I promise we’ll be back before Moon sets _ . Castiel looked down at the tawny gray wolf who smelled of roses and worn paper. She nudged his snout with her own, a sign of affection.

_ I’m positive Bobby, Jody, and myself will be just fine guarding the borders. We’ve been doing it since your father was your age _ . Ellen smiled at him. As if on cue, a ruffle came from the bushes beside them. A brown wolf with bright gold eyes appeared, glancing at Castiel and then at Ellen.

_ So far everything seems fine _ . she gave a nod to Castiel.  _ You go off and handle your fancy meeting, Cas. It’s going to be a snowy and peaceful night. Nothing us old folks can’t handle _ . She said, amusement in her eyes. Castiel huffed.

_ Never have I once said you were old. To either of you _ . he made it a point to look at both of them.  _ Thank you. I promise, this won’t be a common thing. Whatever Gabriel has to say, he wants to stay away from the pack. I promise to bring news back when I can _ . 

Jody nuzzled him before turning around and disappearing back into the bushes. Castiel gave a formal nod to Ellen before turning around and running into the trees, inhaling deeply and enjoying the cool evening wind blowing through his mane. Gabriel had been gone for almost a year, buried deep in the ranks of Alistair and Azazel’s original pack, joining a little bit after the Omega ring was formed. He hadn’t been able to share much intel while there, but now that the ring was downsized and everyone scattered, he finally returned.

From what Castiel remembered, his brother said that he had very important information that almost cost him his life. He said that they had to meet at the ancestral ring for him to share it, that it was too important to protect and needed to be kept on the down-low. Benny had left earlier in the day with a small group of betas to go on a hunt, so it was just Castiel, Charlie, Billie, Balthazar, Anna, and Gabriel for the meeting. He had no idea what information could be so important that it had to be done at the ancestral ring, but Gabriel wasn’t known for being the dramatic type.

As Castiel came to the large field, he stopped at the edge of where the trees ended, waiting in the darkness. The ancestral ring was a perfect circle of field, surrounded by miles and miles of trees. It had eight flat and smooth rocks in the form of a circle towards the center of the field, a large boulder that stood two feet above the rest of them at the beginning of it. It may not look like much, but it’s history went all the way back to Cain and Abel times. A time before Alphas, Betas, and Omegas ruled the planet. 

The legend that had been passed down from packmaster to packmaster varied depending on who told the story, but it was pretty much the same concept: In the beginning, there was only Moon and Sun. They fell in love through the passage of time, but they were never able to be with each other for long, as Moon belonged in the night and Sun belonged in the day. Then, one day, Sun decided to give Moon all of the stars she could make, so he would never be lonely in the sky during the night. Moon was beyond happy, being surrounded by her stars, a constant reminder of her. However, he wasn’t sure what he could give back in turn. 

For days, Moon thought about it until finally he came to a conclusion. Once the next night came, Moon cleared an area big enough so that the Sun could see it, taking eight rocks off of his surface, placing them onto the ground in a circle before placing part of his heart in the very last vacant spot. A portrait of himself, so that Sun would be able to see him throughout the day, as Moon was able to see parts of her at night. When the next day came, Sun was ecstatic to see her gift. She loved it.

But so did the humans.

They wanted to take the rocks for themselves; make them into jewelry and furniture, do whatever they pleased with them. So Sun and Moon met at dawn and together created the first Alpha that could shift from wolf to man, and placed him on Earth to protect the sacred rocks. He kept them safe for years, centuries even. Everything was at peace. 

Until one day, the Alpha came to the rocks at night time and waited until Sun was officially gone before howling loudly to Moon. Moon asked him what was wrong and the Alpha confessed to Moon that he was lonely, he wanted someone to love as Moon had loved the Sun. Moon listened to his child’s sadness and when dawn came, he created an Omega for his Alpha to love. The Alpha thanked him over and over again before the Alpha and the Omega fell in love and mated. 

And, as they say, the rest is history.

Castiel’s ears twitched as he heard the snap of twigs before looking across the way and seeing Balthazar, his gold eyes glowing in the dark. His eyes shifted to the left and saw Charlie poke her nose out from behind a tree, ears flat as she sniffed the air. He sniffed too, but could only smell everyone’s scent. Nothing foreign.

_ I think we’re clear _ . Castiel made sure everyone could hear him before stepping out and making his way to a rock. One by one, everyone came out and picked a rock— Castiel nuzzled Anna affectionately as his little sister appeared in her wolf form (a pastel orange and white mix)— until finally Gabriel appeared. He stood on the large boulder, his ears perked up as he watched all the wolves settle. His gray top fur glistened under Moon’s light as he sat down. 

_ Everything that is spoken here _ , he said wearily while he eyed all the other wolves,  _ is going to  _ stay _ here. Capiche _ ?

All the wolves gave a curt nod simultaneously.  _ We understand, Gabriel. What did you learn _ ? Castiel stood and looked up at him. He heard his brother whimper nervously before exhaling through his snout. They all sat on edge and a moment of silence passed. Gabriel looked up at them with a stone cold look.

_ There’s someone from Alistair’s pack. . . in our camp. A spy _ . he said softly, staring at nothing but the sky as he watched the snow slowly start to fall.

Castiel’s eyes widened and his head was immediately filled with a bunch of voices at once.

_ Impossib _ —

_ How _ —

_ Who _ —

_ We need to relocat _ —

_ No, we  _ need _ to find out who it is and kill them _ —

A sudden growl ripped through the entire field, silencing all of the voices at once. The wolves all laid down in submission as Castiel stood tall, snarling at all of them. He let his entire body radiate anger as a challenge for anyone to speak up. Luckily, no one accepted it. He looked over at Gabriel, who sat still, not willing to look at him.

_ Who _ ? he asked calmly.

_ I don’t know, brother. All I know is that it’s an Omega. That they were sent to the camp not too long ago. Before Azazel’s death _ .

He exhaled slowly and closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down. He kept the nervousness he felt inside his head as he closed a wall around it. He inhaled deeply and when his eyes opened, they were red. He looked at Gabriel before looking at the rest of the wolves.

_ Speak of this to  _ no one _. The conversation that has been held tonight will stay here in this ring. We act as if we know  _ nothing _. Am I clear _ ?

_ Yes, Alpha _ . they all pledged collectively.

Castiel turned his back and looked at the edge of the forest, sensing deeply for any foreign scent, but detecting nothing.  _ We will group at my cabin tomorrow night. Make a list of all the Omegas we have rescued in the past six months. Keep an extra eye on them for the time being. For now, we need to head home. This snow will stick and no one will be able to leave or come in once it does _ . He gave the final order before taking off into the woods. He needed to get back as soon as possible so he could warn Jody, Ellen, Donna, and Bobby. So he could go back and protect his pack. 

So he could protect Dean.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _What would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark? It would be like sleep without dreams._ ― Werner Herzog

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: implied sexual assault at the beginning as well as light PTSD

Dean woke, another scream escaping him as he panted heavily, his entire body drenched in sweat. He moved until he sat up, tears falling down his face as he buried his hands into his hair. Mute sobs racked his body as he put a hand over his mouth, sniffling. This nightmare had been different than the normal one, and Dean was actually wishing that he’d had the fire one again. At least he knew deep down, that it was fake, just a nightmare. It would never happen.

However this nightmare  _ did _ happen. Dean sniffled while another mute sob escaped him, his skin crawling, feeling the phantom pains in his side from where Alistair had gripped him harshly. His entire body was shivering and he couldn’t stop it, no matter how hard he tried. He looked over at Claire’s empty bed, glad for once that she wasn’t there. Kaia and her were having a slumber party and Dean wasn’t her mom— even though the instinctual part of him disagreed— so he made sure it was cool with Kaia’s mom and then let her go. He knew that at least there, Claire would get a good night's sleep. 

He stood and made his way over to the fireplace. Putting two logs in the pit before striking a match and tossing it in, watching flames catch and leisurely begin eating away at the wood. He walked over to the oven and filled a kettle up with water before setting it down and turning the heat up high. He sleepily slid into pajama pants and a brown hoodie before sitting down by the fire and curling up into himself, wriggling his toes as the welcoming heat enveloped them and chased the coldness away. He heard the kettle whistle loudly and got up, making his way to the oven and turning the stovetop off before grabbing a mug and a packet of hot chocolate.

After making himself a cup, he sat down again and sipped before setting it down. It had all felt so. . .  _ real _ . As if he were still stuck in that tiny cabin, his lip still bleeding. The nightmare felt so real, he started doubting that  _ this _ — the entire new pack, the new home, Castiel,  _ everything _ — wasn’t just some sick and twisted day dream he had created so that he could at least mentally escape the hellhole that was his life. 

The more Dean nursed that thought, the more he realized that it made sense. Dean wasn’t really gone from Alistair’s camp. No, no he could  _ definitely  _ feel it now. The dampness of his clothes and how they still clung to his skin; the stench of spoiled meat and ash filling his senses. The more he listened, he started to hear the tapping of the water onto the ground from the hole in the roof of his cabin. He could hear the squeaking of the rats that scattered around through his small room, feeling them thumping through the walls behind him,

He looked down and blinked wildly as he saw the shackle appear around his right ankle. A gasp escaped him and he wiped at his eyes and no, it was definitely still there. Dean stood up and tried to move back but grunted as he felt a wall behind him. A cry escaped him as he turned around and saw the moldy white wall that he had been pressed against many times before appear again. He reached down and grabbed at his ankle but stopped when he felt nothing there. Dean looked down and saw that his ankle was completely bare. He turned around to touch the wall and frowned as he saw nothing but the dining table. 

He looked back over at the cup of hot cocoa before looking at the fireplace and realizing that it was out, had never been lit in the first place. He let out a sharp breath, grabbing the mug and slowly lifting it before realizing it too was completely empty. He looked over at the stove and saw that it was untouched, the kettle nowhere to be seen. He shakily set the mug down and ran over to the door, sliding slippers on and grabbing his jacket. He felt a jolt of fear run down his spine as he looked back at his cabin once more before turning around and leaving. He was going insane.

It was snowing gently and Dean welcomed the cool air, making way over to the path that led to the cliff where Castiel’s cabin sat on top of. He tucked his hands into his pockets and continued to walk, withholding any whimpers that tried to make their way up into his throat and past his lips. He wasn’t sure what was going on; wasn’t sure if he was having a mental breakdown or what. Regardless, he didn’t feel safe. Castiel said that his door was always open, right? It hadn’t been a figment of Dean’s imagination or anything. No, now that he thought about it, the more vividly it came back to his mind. The feeling of Castiel’s body radiating warmth, the Alpha’s enticing smell invading his senses, and the sound of his voice--

He stopped, almost tripping over himself, as the smell of rotting meat and ash returned. His entire body stiffened and he glanced over his shoulder, his mouth quivering with fear as he looked all around behind him before looking back in front of him. A cold chill ran down his spine as Alistair’s beady blue eyes stared back at him and Dean was paralyzed.

“N-No, y-you can’t be. . .”

“Can’t be what, my precious little Omega? Here?” he asked in his nasally voice, his bony finger pointing at the ground. “Why not? This  _ is  _ my camp.” he said, disinterested.

“No! No, get away from me!” Dean yelled before turning on his heel and making a mad dash for the cliff. His heart was in his throat, tears streaming down his face, his eyes looking everywhere for any sign of life, any sign of help he could get. He ran up and went to turn right when something grabbed his ankle and he slipped, falling with a yelp. 

He felt his body roll over against his will and suddenly he was nose to nose with the Alpha. “I thought I taught you better than that. When will you learn, my darling Omega, not to run from me?” he frowned as he reached behind him. Dean watched with horror as a silver blade appeared and Alistair looked at it, his grimy, yellow, crooked grin appearing.

“Please, no,” Dean whimpered pathetically. “Don’t! Don’t!” he cried out, closing his eyes shut as he saw Alistair swing. His entire body stiffened as he braced for pain but it never came. Dean slowly opened his eyes, his breath coming out in short pants, before he realized Alistair was gone. He scrambled quickly to his feet, looking everywhere for the Alpha but not seeing him. He scented the air and the only thing he could smell was a faint trace of Castiel.

_ Castiel _ .

Dean whipped his head around and ran the rest of the way up to Cas’s front porch, rapidly rapping his knuckles on the front door. He looked over his shoulder once more before looking back at the door. Only realizing then that the door was wide open and in its place was a disheveled, half awake, pouty Alpha squinting at him.

“Dean?” he asked with confusion. “It’s almost two in the morning, why are you-“

“Help me,” Dean pleaded before his head suddenly felt extremely light and his eyes rolled into the back of his skull against his well, his legs becoming jell-o. The last thing he remembered was an echoing noise, almost like the sound of his name. He thought he felt giant hands grabbing him but his head lolled to the right and he was unconscious before his body even hit the ground.

x

“Billie!” Cas screamed, holding the limp Omega in his arms. He felt fear and worry, with a hint of anger, run through his entire body as he dragged Dean in with ease. He picked him up bridal style and closed the door with his foot, staring at the seemingly lifeless body in his arms. “ _ Billie _ !”

Out of nowhere, the Beta appeared, her brows knitted together as she took in the sight of the Omega. Cas heard footsteps approach the door behind him and his Alpha instincts kicked in instantly. Before the door could fully swing open, Cas was baring his teeth at the intruder, his eyes flashing a dangerous red as they met concerned green ones. His younger sister held her hands up coolly, her face in calm-battle-mode as she took in the scene around her. “Cas,” she said calmly and he unwillingly retracted his fangs, not having time to feel embarrassed about his actions as he looked back down at Dean. “what happened?” 

“I-I don’t know, he-he just showed up and he collapsed, I-“ Castiel couldn’t form a coherent thought as Anna helped carry him over to the leather couch. He watched his younger sister touch Dean’s forehead softly.

“He’s running a high fever, Cas. We need to break it.” she looked up at Billie. “I need a cold wash cloth, please,” she said softly before looking up at her brother. “Alright, help me lift his head up so that I can put the wash cloth on his neck.” she ordered. With his help, Anna managed to prop his head up on a pillow and grabbed the wash cloth from Billie, placing it on Dean’s neck. 

As Anna sent Billie to get another cloth, Cas took in the state of the Omega. He was extremely pale and dark circles rested under his eyes. Beads of sweat gathered at his hairline and Castiel— for once in his life— felt completely helpless and lost. He looked at Anna with fear and he could see the worry in his sister’s eyes.

“Don’t worry, Castiel. I promise, he’ll be fine.” she said calmly. “Let me do my magic.” she gave a weak smile and he nodded. He watched for an hour as Anna worked on breaking Dean’s fever. At the hour and a half mark, the Omega was no longer sweating but he was still extremely pale. Anna exhaled deeply and stood up, giving his arm a squeeze.

“Any idea what caused this?” Cas asked with worry, his thumbnail between his teeth. 

“Lack of sleep, no doubt.” she said as she touched the damp cloth on his forehead. “The poor thing must have been suffering from horrific hallucinations before his body caved in. Judging from the dark shadows under his eyes, he hasn’t had a full rest for at least the past week.” she frowned as she looked over at Cas. “He was one of the Omegas. . . from the ring? Wasn’t he?”

Castiel nodded, pursing his lips and staring at the Omega. She sighed and grabbed the bucket of water that was next to the couch. She moved it to the kitchen area before nodding towards Dean. “Help me move him to your bed?”

He nodded without hesitation. “I can carry him, Anna. Please, go rest now. I’ll look after him.” he said tenderly, giving his younger sister’s shoulder a squeeze. She gave him a shy smile before standing on her tiptoes and kissing his cheek. 

“If you need me, you know where my cabin is.” she whispered before turning around and walking out the door. Cas sighed and looked down at Dean before picking him up bridal style once more and moving him over to the large bed. Cas laid him out straight and took the comforter, pulling it over him. He grabbed the now room temperature wash cloth and went to the kitchen quickly, trading it out for a colder one.

He made his way into the room, clicking his tongue. “My poor, sweet Omega,” he whispered softly as he put the wash cloth on to his forehead. “I’m here. I’ve got you.” he grabbed Dean’s limp hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’m not going anywhere.”

x

Dean opened his eyes slowly, the light brighter than normal. He raised his hand to cover it as a deep yawn escaped him. About mid-yawn, he froze, taking another deep smell. Everything that he inhaled was pure  _ Alpha _ scent. The room, the blankets, the pillows. . . Dean’s head laid back down as he snuggled into it. Oh, the  _ pillows _ . . .

That’s about the time when everything came back and hit Dean like a truck. The nightmare, the hallucinations, the pain, knocking on Castiel’s door. . . He looked around quickly, his eyes wide as he felt his cheeks blush. He came here in the midst of a post-nightmare-haze; he bothered his— no,  _ the _ , not  _ his _ — Alpha with it and woke him up at some ungodly time in the morning. 

“You’re awake.” a deep voice with a gravelly edge to it spoke. Dean nearly jumped out of his skin and he turned to look at the Alpha, blushing furiously now.

“I-I am.” he said softly, looking away rather quickly as he tried not to stare for a prolonged amount of time. From what he saw, Castiel was wearing gray sweats and a black shirt that clung to his torso, tight around his biceps. He swallowed thickly and that’s when he realized just how parched he truly was. He pushed the covers off and turned to get up when he heard the hum of disapproval come from above him. His eyes slowly moved up and they met the Alpha’s. “I’m thirsty,” he said weakly.

“I can have Billie get you a glass of water.” Cas said firmly. “I don’t want you getting up Omega. Please don’t make me repeat myself.” he warned before walking over to the door and opening it. Dean took the moment to look him over, watching his back muscles ripple underneath the soft cloth. All too soon though, the Alpha’s blue eyes were back on him. Dean quickly looked down at his hands that were folded in his lap. “What’s the last thing you remember, Dean?”

He tried to ignore the shiver that sprinkled down his spine at the sound of his name on Cas’ tongue. “Th-The last thing I remember is knocking on your door, which I’m sorry about by the way.” he whispered, feeling Cas’ heated gaze. He felt the bed shift suddenly and looked at Castiel who was sitting beside him now. 

“Why are you sorry?” he asked quizzically. “I told you my door was always open.”

The Omega looked up at him with big eyes, his mouth moving almost like a fish underwater as he let out a sharp breath and looked back down at his hands. “Y-Yeah, I guess so.” he smiled weakly. He twiddled his thumbs slowly, fingering at a stray strand of cloth that hung off the blanket, feeling somewhat foolish. Why had he come here to Castiel’s? What was he expecting to get from the Alpha? Dean was about to say something when he felt Castiel’s hand grab his.   
  
“Don’t do that to me again, please.” he said softly, pain-filled blue eyes looking up at him. Dean stared widely at him, not quite understanding what the Alpha meant, but instantly kicking himself for being the one to cause that look in those beautiful blue eyes. “I was so  _ worried _ ,” he whispered. “Wasn’t sure if you were even going to wake up.”

He felt the tips of his ears burn. “I’m sure it wasn’t  _ too  _ bad, I mean--”

“Dean, you slept for almost twenty-two hours.” he interrupted, his eyes turning a fiery blue. “Don’t try and downsize this.” 

He felt his jaw go slack. Twenty-two  _ hours _ ? How reckless could he be? Dean let out a sharp breath and felt his body sag as he held his head in his hands. “I’m so sorry, Cas, I didn’t mean to scare you like that. . .” he whispered, trying to ignore the inner Omega that perked up at the fact Cas was even worried to begin with.

_ Of course he was. You’re a member of the pack now. Don’t get a big ego, Winchester _ .

“I know you didn’t. Just. . . promise me something? I know I’ve asked you to promise me a lot of things recently.” he said with a shy smile, his hand reaching up to rub the back of his neck.   
  
Dean looked up at him, shocked that an Alpha could ever look as shy as Cas did in that moment. “I don’t mind the promises,” he said softly, looking down meekly at how brazen his words were. “What is it, Alpha?”

“Come to me before it gets that bad again, alright?” Cas asked softly. He gave the Omega’s hand a squeeze. “I’m sure we can figure something out a lot sooner if you do. That way you don’t become mister comatose again.”

Dean couldn’t help the giggle that escaped him at the pet name as he slowly nodded his head. “Alright. It’s a promise.” he said fondly as he squeezed Castiel’s hand back. He looked down at their hands before looking back up into those beautiful cerulean eyes, wishing he could freeze the moment in time and just savor it. The Alpha looked so. . . Dean felt his throat go dry at the look that was in his eyes. His body language was tense and rigid, but his eyes seemed a calm and steady blue, a gleam of possessiveness around the pupil. His smell was laced with a sense of satisfaction and the Omega couldn’t help but hope that the Alpha was satisfied with him, with his response. 

Castiel slowly reached up and he inhaled deeply as he cupped Dean’s jaw tenderly. “As much as I would love to stay and get lost in those beautiful emerald spheres that people refer to as eyes,” Cas said softly, “I do have a pack to run. . .” he hesitated, letting his thumb tenderly touch Dean’s lower lip and tugging it slowly; he hadn’t even realized he’d been chewing it. “And I know there is a certain pup who has been worried sick about her mama.”   
  
Dean choked on air at the last comment. “No, Claire isn’t. . . she was never. . . I didn’t-”

“Hate to interrupt,” a sultry voice halted Dean’s train of thought as Billie came into view with a glass of water. “But I brought the water for the Omega.” she said as she walked over and set it down on the nightstand next to Dean’s thigh. “And I hate to be a thief, but I need to steal the Alpha’s attention.” she said ruefully. He gave out an embarrassed laugh and nodded.

“Of course,” he glanced over at Cas. “I should probably leave soon anyway. . . you know, pack duties and stuff.” he murmured awkwardly. He didn’t miss the way Cas’ head tilted at him. He opened his mouth to say something when Billie’s hand landed on his shoulder and he sighed deeply.

“Alright. Don’t feel as if we’re rushing you out though, Dean,” he said softly as he squeezed Dean’s hand a final time before slowly standing. He looked at Billie before giving a curt nod to Dean. “Feel free to take your time. If you need to rest a little more, that’s okay too. Just let us know when you’re leaving okay?”   
  
Dean watched him walk out, Billie following after, before he grabbed the glass of water she had brought and downed it all in huge gulps. He couldn’t help but feel his body practically whine at the loss of contact with the Alpha.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will._  
>  ― Suzy Kassem

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for being MIA for so long. My parents came down to visit and I've also been spending a lot of time with my friends and dealing with other personal issues. But I'm back! Please enjoy, lovelies <3

Castiel trotted in the snow silently, sniffing every few moments as his eyes scanned the perimeter, his breath coming out as white clouds. It was colder than usual, considering he had his thick coat of fur and even  _ he _ couldn’t help but shiver slightly as he made his early rounds. Normally he would leave the early patrolling to Billie or Benny, but ever since Gabriel had told them there was a spy somewhere in the pack, he couldn’t help himself. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Billie’s or Benny’s judgement, because he did to a high degree. If he didn’t, he would never have made them guards in the first place. He just wanted to make sure for his  _ own _ sanity that no one else was getting in or out of their territory. It was already immensely annoying that there was a spy, almost like a little gnat in the back of his brain that continuously buzzed at him in a mocking tone. Constantly reminding- some might even say taunting- him that they were there and he had no idea who it was, nor did he know what they were planning.

Castiel’s ears flattened in annoyance at the thought of not knowing what to expect. He hated surprises more than anything. Almost as much as he hated Alphas who thought they owned everything in their path, living or not. Castiel mentally kicked himself for thinking the last thought because that had just soured his mood even more. By the time he was done with his runs and heading back to his cabin, he was in a horrendous mood. His ears were flat and his shoulders were hunched as he stalked low to the ground, making his way up the cliff. When he got to the front of his cabin, the door swung open and Castiel’s wolfish blue eyes met amused blue ones.

“What, did some bird shit on your shoulder?” Balthazar quipped with amusement. Castiel growled at him, snuffing as he sat down on his haunches. His ears tucked against his head and he squinted at his brother. “Bravo, Cassie, for showing me that even as a wolf, you can’t take a joke.”

Castiel closed his eyes and gritted his teeth as he relaxed his body, feeling his bones shift around as muscles relaxed and strained in different areas. Within moments, he was butt naked and squatting in the snow, but he was too pissed to care. “Do you ever take anything serious Balthazar? I mean honestly, what did Hannah see in you that screamed ‘mate’ to her?” he growled as he walked inside, inwardly sighing with relief as the warmth of the fireplace kissed at his legs and torso, wrapping around him like a warm blanket fresh from the dryer. 

“Who pissed in your coffee?” Billie’s sultry voice asked from behind him. Castiel shot her a glare before disappearing into his room to quickly getting dressed in jeans and a black sweater. He came back out, socks in hand, choosing to ignore both Betas for the time being as he wasn’t quite sure how to respond. He slid on both socks before standing up and sliding on his boots. After a few moments of silence, he stood up and decided to reply with something that ignored both of their questions. 

“Who said you two could just come in to my home?” he rebutted. Both Betas looked at him questioningly.

“You did. Well, past you. Not the one who currently has a stick up his ass.” Balthazar muttered as he grabbed a muffin from the counter. Castiel rolled his eyes as he grabbed a jacket and slid it on. Billie took a sip of her coffee, not saying anything, though her eyes were filled with amusement. Balthazar sighed and clicked his tongue. “Alright, I’m sorry, I know that you’ve had a lot on your plate with everything that’s been going on recently.”   
  
“Thank you,” Cas huffed as he zipped his jacket up and rolled his head on his shoulders. “I’m going to head down to the food hall and check in with everyone, see how everyone is doing and whatnot. Hopefully Ellen or Bobby will be there so we can talk about. . . You know.” he murmured softly. They weren’t sure who could be listening at any given moment so they tried to not say much while in the pack grounds. Balthazar simply nodded as he took a bite of the muffin, humming. 

“You gonna see your boyfriend too while you’re down there?” Balthazar purred nonchalantly, glancing over at him with the faintest hint of a smirk. Castiel almost tripped over himself as he went to grab the door handle.

“My what now?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, are you two not wanting to label it yet?” 

Castiel gritted his teeth, his eyes narrowing. “There’s nothing  _ to _ label, Balth. He’s an Omega that we rescued and who is currently residing with us. That would be a very gross and disgusting abuse of power.” he said, his nose scrunching with disgust. Balthazar gave him the bitchiest face Castiel had ever seen on the Beta.

“How so?”

Cas opened his mouth to say something but then stopped. “What?”

“How. So?” he challenged the Alpha. Castiel scoffed as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“Come on, Balth. He was kidnapped by Alastair, taken without a choice, and now he’s stuck here until Spring. Have you ever thought that  _ maybe _ he would find me repulsive? Or at least the thought of me repulsive?”

Balthazar genuinely snorted and out of Castiel’s peripheral vision, he could see even Billie roll her eyes at that. “Come on, Cassie. The poor Omega is acting like a lost pup around you. Whenever you’re near him, he looks at you as if you’re the answer to everything. Either that, or he’s looking at you as if you’re a tree and he’s a monkey. Seriously brother, are you truly that blind?”

“You’re ridiculous.” Cas muttered, shaking his head. “Dean more than likely sees me as just another Alpha. I know that for almost every Omega who has been through what he’s been through, they very rarely see a difference between an Alpha like Alastair and one like me.”   
  


At that comment, something in the air shifted and suddenly Balthazar was out of his seat and crossing the room at a steady pace. He grabbed Cas by his jacket and shoved him against the door, his entire aura screaming with rage. Castiel blinked in confusion at the sudden shift in the atmosphere as he looked at Balthazar. Both of them knew that if Castiel truly felt threatened, he could have the Beta on the ground within a second, but they also knew that Balthazar’s actions had no true threat. “Don’t you  _ dare _ compare my brother to that creepy fucker.” Balthazar growled. “Alpha or not, I’m still your brother first. I won’t tolerate you talking about yourself like that. You are  _ nothing _ like Alastair and you never will be.” 

Castiel felt his body relax and he swallowed, letting out a deep breath as he looked Balthazar up and down, giving a faint nod. “Alright.” Cas murmured as he stood up and brushed his jacket. “I’m going to go head out to the Food Hall now.” he exhaled deeply before making his way out of the cabin and down the cliff.

  
  


x

  
  


“And where do you think you’re going?”

“ _ Dean _ !” Claire pouted as she looked up at him, her lower lip quivering. Dean shook his head as he walked over and squatted down, pushing up his sleeves to the warm green sweater he was wearing.

“Don’t ‘Dean’ me, young lady. You aren’t walking outside without a proper jacket on. Not in this weather.” he said as he pointed over at the kitchen chair where a large jacket laid. Claire huffed out deeply. 

“But I can’t run in that thing! It’s too puffy and the stupid sleeves are always falling down. Krissy’s mom doesn’t make  _ her _ wear a big jacket!” she complained, her face twisting into a scowl. Dean quirked an eyebrow at her.

“Yeah, well, you’ll be thanking me when you get to run around outside in a puffy jacket while Krissy becomes the living embodiment of a pupcicle. Now go get your coat on or so help me, I will make sure you stay inside all day long.” Dean said as he crossed his arms. Claire huffed but said nothing as she stormed over and slid into her jacket. Dean smiled softly as he motioned for her to come back and he helped her zip up the coat. “See? Was that so bad?”

“Whatever,” Claire mumbled as she put on her hat and then the tiny gloves she received from Donna a few days prior. Dean stood up and opened the door, letting Claire run out and into the field. He grabbed his jacket and slid it on before walking out and closing the door behind him. He inhaled deeply, the cold air hurting his lungs slightly as he looked around. It was definitely colder than it had been prior, but they were also in almost mid November now, so of course it was to be expected. Dean grabbed the stair railing as he made his way down, looking up at Sun who was shining brightly on them. Sun’s rays made the snow twinkle every so often, almost as if tiny diamonds were buried within it, and it never failed to make Dean watch it with awe at times. Dean was about to take a step down when a snowball hit him square in the jaw, causing his foot to miss the last step and his entire body’s balance to shift.

He didn’t even get time to yell out as he fell towards the snow. His eyes closed shut as he braced to feel the coldness surround him, but it never came. He felt something hard against his chest and when his eyes opened, they met intense blue ones. His ears grew hot as the tips burned a bright red. “C-Cas,” he managed to breathe out. The Alpha tilted his head as he helped Dean stand up straight, glancing over Dean’s body to make sure he was okay. 

“Hello, Dean,” he murmured as he looked behind Dean and at the redheaded beta who was rushing over to them, her eyes practically bulging out of her skull. “I guess I have good timing?”

“Dean, oh my god, I’m so sorry!” Charlie cried out as she grabbed his arm tenderly. “I-I was just trying to get your attention! I swear, I didn’t have any intention of trying to hurt you. I should have just yelled your name instead of throwing a snowball, huh?” she let out a soft sigh as she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. 

Dean wiped his front, feeling a laugh escape him as he looked at her. “Yeah, that probably would have been for the best,” he gave her a crooked smile as he took a chance to peek at Cas. The Alpha was glowering at Charlie, his face filled with disapproval. “It’s okay though. I’m fine! No harm done. Right, Cas?” Dean emphasized Cas’ name as he looked up at him and his blue eyes met Dean’s green ones. Dean gave him a shy smile and the way Castiel’s posture relaxed, even if it was just minutely, didn’t go unnoticed. 

“I suppose so.” he exhaled as he looked Charlie over before looking back at Dean. Dean couldn’t help but feel his cheeks turn a light pink as he looked down at his hands. Charlie looked between the two of them before clearing her throat. “So why did you want Dean’s attention, Charlie?” Castiel asked her with a quirked brow.

Charlie’s eyebrows shot up and her mouth moved up and down a few times before she finally spoke. “Oh, uh, nothing. I mean, I obviously had something in mind but then of course I accidentally hit him in the face with a snowball and now the reason I wanted to talk to him has completely slipped my mind and-” she stopped as she looked to the side. “Oh! Hey, Balthazar is waving for me, I’ll see you two around, yeah?” she chirped before awkwardly walking to the left and running over to where the other blonde Beta was standing at the end of the trail that led to Cas’ cabin.

“She’s so weird sometimes,” Dean laughed as they watched her leave before he looked over at Cas. “So, um. . . I-I was just going to head over to the Food Hall. . . if you wanted to maybe come with? To get breakfast, I mean.” he blurted out, his cheeks feeling hotter than what they should considering Jack Frost was still nipping at their noses. Castiel’s eyebrows shot up at Dean’s words and he looked him over before opening his mouth to say something and then closing it. 

“Actually, I was just about to head over there myself. So why not?” Cas gave him a small smile. “After you, Omega.” he held his hand out in front of him. Dean looked down and fought a smile as he nodded and made his way towards the tallest building in the pack grounds.

Charlie made her way over to Balthazar’s side and together they stood and watched as Dean and Castiel made their way over to the building. She tucked her hands into her jacket pocket and licked her lower lip as Balthazar stared at the pair, his lips pursed. “How’d it go?”

“How do you think it went?” Charlie hissed under her breath as they watched the two disappear inside. “Cas gave me the look of ‘I-want-to-kill-you-but-I-know-that-you’re-too-valuable-to-kill’ once he was sure Dean was okay.” she sighed as she looked at Balthazar. They stood in silence for a few moments before Balthazar broke out into a full grin. 

“Good, so it worked then?”

“Oh, like a  _ charm _ .” Charlie said as they did a subtle fist bump before she sighed and looked back at the Food Hall. “You promise Cas won’t come after me when he finds out the real reason I hit Dean in the face with a snowball?” 

“Charlie, if everything works out according to plan, Cas will be too happy to care. We’re doing it for his own good, remember?” he sighed as he held his head high. “Sometimes that means that an innocent Omega must get hit in the face with a ball of ice. Now, if you’ll excuse me, Hannah wants me to help set up the christmas decorations.”

“Christmas decorations?” Charlie scoffed. “Dude, it’s not even Thanksgiving yet.” 

Balthazar shrugged. “You know how mates are though. You’ll do anything to make them happy. Ciao.” he wiggled his fingers before turning on his heel and slowly disappearing from sight. Charlie rolled her eyes before making her way up the cliff to shift into her wolf form so that she and Billie could do their runs. 

  
  


x

Castiel watched Dean walk over to the counter to get some food while he stood by the door. He was waiting for Ellen to come back out and had told Dean to go ahead and get something to eat and he would catch up with him when he was done, so for now he was stuck with relishing the way Dean looked and smelled from afar. He couldn’t help but note how much more. . .  _ vibrant  _ the Omega’s smell was today, but figured that it was probably more amplified because of the fact that they were in a smaller space than they normally were outside. Not that he was complaining, considering the ginger and spice scent seemed to be a tad sweeter than normal. Cas inhaled deeper unconsciously as he leaned against the wall, his eyes wanting to close on instinct. Never would he admit out loud that Dean’s scent had become his new favorite thing to smell. It was always such a nice treat he would get every time he passed Dean’s cabin while doing his morning and evening rounds. The following week after Dean had stayed overnight in his cabin had been paradise because of the sweet left-over scent of Omega that was all over his room. 

Every time Cas inhaled, he could feel the scent become more and more vibrant, as well as more and more pungent. While his nose enjoyed it, the longer that he stood there, the more his head started to throb at the smell. In addition, the longer he stood there, the more his body ached to be closer to the Omega for some odd reason. In fact, it seemed that every second that went by, the more his bones started to hurt and feel stiff. Now that he thought about it, where the fuck was Ellen? Why was she taking so damn long? Did it really take ten minutes to hang one  _ fucking _ apron up-

“Sorry that I took so long,” Ellen’s voice interrupted his thoughts as she wiped her hands onto her jeans. “I was almost right back out but one of the new cooks had a question about a recipe which led to me having to give her a long explanation of-” her voice came to a halt as she took Castiel’s appearance in. “Are you feeling okay, Cas? You’re looking a little. . . warm.” she frowned. Cas tilted his head, his eyes squinting at her statement. Sure, it had felt a little stuffy in the room but they were also in one building with over fifty people so Cas figured that it was because of the body count. They also were in the process of serving hot breakfast, so really it wasn’t  _ that _ big of a deal. 

Right?

“I’m feeling okay,” Cas breathed out as he crossed his arms and looked at her. She gave him a look over, clearly not convinced, but didn’t say anything as she nodded. “Did, um. . .” What was he going to ask her? It had been something involving the whole Spy thing, right? He tried to think back to earlier that morning- or even to just five minutes prior- but he found it hard to concentrate with the smell of Dean filling his senses up so much. If he could just maybe get out of the room. . .

Before he even knew what he was doing, Cas’ body was moving on instinct. He was looking at the door and was going to walk towards it, but the more he looked at it, he realized it was getting further away from him. He tilted his head and looked back to see where his legs were going when he noticed that they were walking towards where the Omega was standing, talking to another Omega with soft blonde hair. Cas inhaled deeply and he could feel something stir deep inside his chest and he didn’t know  _ why _ it was so important that he needed to be near Dean, but it just was. He was only inches away from reaching out to grab Dean’s shoulder when he felt a firm hand grip his own. He turned around to push the hand off of him so he could go over to Dean but stopped when he saw Ellen’s intense glare at him. She reached up and grabbed his earlobe before pulling him back and Cas felt a surge of anger rip through him.  _ How dare she take him away from his Omega? How dare she try and tell him what to do! He was the Alpha of the pack and no one, especially not another Omega, was going to order him- _

His train of thought disappeared as his attention was brought back to the present when Ellen lowered her hand. “Snap  _ out of it _ .” she hissed. “And don’t you  _ dare  _ growl at me again or so help me God, Castiel Novak, you will regret it.”

Cas looked down at her and then around them, his hand reaching up to touch the fading red mark on his cheek. “Wh-When did we get outside?” he whispered, his chest churning as he looked back at the older woman. She put her hands on her hips.

“We’ve been out here for twenty minutes. Do you not remember me having to shove your stubborn ass through the door?” she asked, concern lacing her voice. She reached over and touched his forehead tenderly before pursing her lips as realization dawned on her face. “You need to go back to your cabin and you need to go back now.”

“Ellen, don’t be ridiculous, I’m  _ fine _ .” he said, though his voice couldn’t convince himself, let alone Ellen. 

“Are you?” she asked and he actually had to stop and think about it for a few moments. The ache in his bones, the fever, the heightened senses. . . He looked up at her with big eyes as everything clicked in his head. He didn’t say another word, he simply tucked his hands into his jacket pocket and did a high speed walk, ducking his head as he made his way back to his cabin. He couldn’t be outside, not like this. Of course he hadn’t recognized the signs, hadn’t recognized the behaviour pattern. It had been at  _ least _ fifteen years since the last time this had happened to him.

Castiel managed to shove himself into the cabin before tossing his jacket onto the floor and slamming the door behind him. He locked it before resting his head against the mahogany door, his hand grabbing the handle tightly as he gritted his teeth. The last time he had gone through a rut, he had just turned eighteen. It had lasted only five days, but it was the most excruciating five days he could remember. Only back then, he didn’t have an Omega scent in mind. It was just any Omega smell in general. However, as he grew up, he learned to control this small side of him. Never in his time as Pack Leader had he found an Omega scent that he truly found appealing. It was easier to ignore the carnal impulses, like ruts, that way. However this time. . . 

This time, he wasn’t so lucky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just a fair warning, the next chapter is going to be a little steamy ;)


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _How beautiful is the relationship between the Moon and the dark night sky? So contrasting yet so incomplete without each other._ -unknown

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I promise I haven't forgotten this fic, there has just been a lot of drama and change going on in my life right now, and my schedule is becoming more and more full as the days go by. I can't guarantee that every Tuesday and Friday there will be an update, but I am trying my hardest to stay by that schedule, I promise!
> 
> Thanks to my amazing Beta Jeffy for helping me push through this!
> 
> [TW]: Smut, Anxiety Attack

A moan escaped Cas as he fisted his cock quickly, his hips thrusting into his tight grip as his eyes stayed closed, images of Dean flashing through his mind. His cock ached from how much Cas had been touching it, how many times he had pumped it with his hand; but it also seemed no matter how many times he came, the hunger was never sated for more than an hour at most. Cas gritted his teeth, his hips stuttering as he felt his orgasm building up deep in his gut. A small chant of ‘Dean’ fell off his lips as the first white strip of come escaped him, the image of Dean face down and ass up in the air, presenting to him being what sent him over. He stilled as he slowly milked the small amount of come that was left before plopping back on his couch. His entire chest was glimmering with sweat, his black hair sticking to his forehead as he let his hands fall to his sides.

This was always the worst part, the aftermath of his orgasm. He felt nothing but guilt at the fact that it was Dean’s name that repeatedly escaped his lips through every moan, that it was images of Dean presenting and being a good Omega that made Cas achieve every orgasm. His humane side knew what Dean had been through, knew that Dean would never be able to see Cas in a different light than Alastair. However, his primal side- the Alpha, the reason he was having this stupid rut in the first place- didn’t seem to care. Cas stared down at his softening cock, feeling nothing but exhaustion and guilt run through him as his high from his orgasm faded. He had left Dean alone, without _any_ explanation. The Omega probably wouldn’t want anything to do with him now. Not that he had wanted much to do with him before.

Yet, it was _him_ that Dean came to when he was having nightmares and hallucinations. It was _him_ that Dean danced with on the night of Halloween. . . Didn’t that count for something? Couldn’t that mean that there was some sort of attraction there on Dean’s end too? Not to mention whenever they made eye contact, Dean’s scent would flare up momentarily and. . . Cas stared down and watched with misery as his cock began stirring, half hard within seconds. He didn’t know how long he had been going at it, but it had to have been at least a day, maybe two. It was hard to have a grasp at the concept of time when he was either extremely horny or extremely exhausted and trapped in his own head.

Cas tenderly grabbed his cock, slowly pumping it as his head fell back onto the couch. He bucked his hips up as all other non-sexual thoughts that were about Dean slipped away rapidly as his member became completely hard. A moan passed his lips once more as the smell of Dean’s slick came back to his mind. Cas had only gotten a whiff of it once and it was when he had first visited Dean in his cabin. Dean had been so close to having his heat at the time and before Cas had left, he had smelt a drift of the slick forming between Dean’s legs and he practically had to throw himself out of the room before he did something he would’ve regret. It had smelled so sweet compared to Dean’s normal gingery scent. It was like the scent of gingerbread with extra icing and it was extremely tempting and, God, what Cas wouldn’t do to just get a small taste. . . 

Another soft groan escaped him as he tightened his grip on his erection. He could feel his cock throbbing as he swiped some precome off the tip of his dick and dragged it down his shaft and towards the knot that was forming at the base. He started picking up his pace with the thrusting as he imagined Dean back in his bed. The Omega was looking up at him, his emerald green eyes almost completely black from being blown with lust, his freckles standing out through the rosiness of his cheeks. Castiel watched from behind closed eyes as the Omega turned around on the slick-soaked sheets and positioned himself onto the bed, propping himself on his knees before slowly laying his face down onto the pillow. The Alpha gazed in awe as Dean’s back muscles rippled under the tan skin when the Omega reached to either side and grabbed a handful of flesh, spreading himself wide so he was fully presented. 

“ _Alpha_ ,” he could hear Dean whimper quietly. Castiel watched the slick slowly slide down from Dean’s entrance and a surge of possessiveness flooded Castiel’s veins as his fangs ached, his orgasm hitting him hard for the umpteenth time that day.

“Dean!” he cried out in ecstasy, his come falling in pearly white strips across his abdomen and belly. He panted as he felt his hands fall to his side once more and his head lolled to the side as he felt the last of his energy leave him. He groaned quietly as he looked at the clock on his wall. It was past five, the sun beginning to set for the evening. He heard a loud gurgle escape his stomach and he realized that the last time he had eaten anything was two days prior to his rut hitting him. He was getting ready to get food with Dean when this stupid thing kicked in. Cas weakly tried to stand up, every single muscle in his body aching in protest as he managed to straighten his backout. He walked over to his kitchen, not caring to put on any clothes as he made his way to the fridge. He swung it open and saw a bowl of salad with chicken mixed in it. 

He didn’t even think twice. He grabbed the bowl and unwrapped it, tossing the plastic wrap to the side before grabbing a handful of the greens and shoving them into his mouth. He was in the process of licking the bowl clean when he heard a loud gasp come from in front of him. Cas’ hands fell and his eyes went wide as they met blue and brown ones. His eyes moved from Billie to Balthazar as they gawked at him. It took about four seconds for Cas to register that Balthazar was staring with pride while Billie stared with utter confusion and a little bit of disgust.

“Christ, Cas,” Billie muttered as she looked around the room. Her eyebrows shot up and she pointed towards the floor where stuffing from a pillow laid. “I am _not_ cleaning that up, you understand me?” she quirked an eyebrow before she sniffed and gagged almost instantly. “I’m going to go grab some pine. . . Maybe that will help,” she looked around the room and waved her finger everywhere. “Clear this stench out.” she gave Cas a look before turning and walking out the door. Cas’ eyes flickered to Balthazar, who had a cocky grin on his face as he stared back at Cas.

“Did my brother finally hit puberty?” he asked, wiggling his eyebrows. Castiel growled deeply at him as he gave the deadliest glare he could before he bent over and grabbed the bowl, setting it on the counter before moving to his fridge and closing the door. 

“Shut up,” he muttered with annoyance. 

_Brothers_.

x

  


Dean set the kettle down onto the stovetop and turned the flames to high before walking over to the window of his small kitchen and looking out of it. The Sun was high in the sky and the birds were chirping loudly as they visited each other on branches and flew side by side. Pups were chasing each other around and playing in the snow while Omegas and Betas walked together around the campground. It was a week before Thanksgiving and Dean wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself. He wished he could enjoy it, and he was thankful that he had the freedom to enjoy it, but he had been in a funk for the past week that he just couldn’t seem to shake.

He grit his teeth as he crossed his arms, definitely _not_ scowling as he turned his back to the window to focus on the kettle. Castiel had been gone for an entire week. The last time Dean had heard from him was the morning they walked to the food hall together. Sure, Cas seemed a bit off, but it was _Cas_. The Alpha always seemed a tad off than normal Alphas. Dean had gone to find them a place to sit and he turned around, expecting Cas to be there by him, but instead he found the Alpha gone, nowhere to be seen. Dean grumbled quietly as he made his way over to the counter and grabbed a few bananas before grabbing a small knife and peeling them slowly. He set them down on the small cutting board that Jody had given him and started chopping slowly. 

He knew that he didn’t have a right to be upset with Cas. After all, Cas wasn’t obligated to sit next to Dean or even visit with him. However, he couldn’t help but be hurt by the fact that the Alpha just up and left like that. Was it because he talked to Jess for a few moments? They were only checking in on each other, that didn’t mean Dean was just going to leave Cas by himself! Dean chopped more angrily before a sudden hiss escaped him as he looked down at his finger that was now bleeding. He tossed the knife onto the counter before walking over to the sink and running some water, his eyes tearing up as the stinging sensation got more intense. He turned the water off before using a towel to dry his finger on and then grabbing a bandaid and wrapping it around his wound tightly. He sighed and rubbed his face before sliding his hand down it, feeling in an even worse mood than he was before.

“Stupid Alpha with his stupid good looks and his stupid cryptic behavior.” he growled quietly as he looked at his finger before he heard a gentle knock on his door. He set the towel down before walking over to the door and swinging it open. He opened his mouth to say something but froze completely when his eyes met piercing blue ones that were filled with remorse and shame. He closed his mouth tightly and bit his lip, looking the Alpha up and down while his scent invaded Dean’s nose. The man was wearing black jeans and a black sweater, black boots topping it off. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and Dean got a peek of the tattoo on his wrist that was identical to Charlie’s, if not slightly bigger.

“Hello, Dean.” Cas said with a shy smile, dimples kissing his cheeks. “Do you mind if I come in?” His blue eyes looked behind him before looking back at him and all it took were those few seconds of his gaze being off Dean for Dean to remember how to breathe.

“Cas,” he said almost breathlessly. “Um, yeah, sure.” he added quickly as he stepped to the side so the Alpha could walk past him. He closed his door before turning around to face Cas, a mixture of feelings rising in his chest. He inhaled deeply but instantly regretted it as the smell of the Alpha’s scent filled his nostrils and he quickly let out a sharp breath of air through his mouth before his thoughts tried to run wild. He watched the Alpha gaze awkwardly around the room and Dean could feel his discomfort radiating off of him in waves. Against his better judgement, Dean pointed towards the kettle. “I’m, um, making hot cocoa. Would you like a cup?”

“That would be nice,” Cas said with a slight nod before sitting down at the kitchen table. As Dean made two cups, he glanced at the Alpha every few seconds. His eyebrows were furrowed together and Dean could tell the older man seemed to be having an inner battle with himself, his teeth gnawing on his lower lip. Dean licked his lips unconsciously for a second before finishing making the cups and carrying them over to the small kitchen table. He sat down and gave the cup to Cas, not knowing what to say or if he should just wait for Cas to initiate the conversation this time. He decided to nurse his cup of cocoa, in favor of the latter. 

Sure enough, after a few minutes of silence, Cas opened his mouth. “I want to apologize. . . for leaving you.” he said as his blue eyes flickered up to Dean’s green ones. The light from outside reflected off the blue orbs, making the darker blue specks become more prominent, adding depth to them. Dean tilted his head, slightly confused. Never had an Alpha apologized to him, except for maybe Sam. “It was extremely rude of me. However, something. . . came up that needed my immediate attention. . .” the Alpha looked back down at the mug and a feeling pooled in Dean’s gut, telling him that he probably wasn’t receiving the full truth of the statement, but he decided not to say anything. Instead, they both simultaneously took a sip of their drinks.

“I figured as much,” Dean said after a moment. He gave Cas a weak smile as he tugged his sleeves down and balled the ends of them up in his fists., wincing as he felt his poor finger throb. “Honestly, Cas, it’s fine. I know that you’re the only Alpha in this camp, therefore you have a lot of responsibilities and you have more important things to tend to besides an Omega.” he said as he looked down at his own drink. He felt a blush threaten to creep up his neck and he cleared his throat. “No hard feelings.”  
  
He could feel Cas’ intense blue gaze and he peeked up at him through his lashes. The Alpha’s nose flared for a second and he cleared his throat as he quickly looked away. “How have you been sleeping?” he asked softly. Dean’s eyebrows shot up and he bit the inside of his cheek as he shrugged. 

“I don’t really wake up screaming anymore,” he said half honestly. He had somehow trained his body to not make noise while Claire was there; however when she stayed the night at a friend’s house. . . Well, that was a different story. “Besides, the dream is pretty much always the same and it always ends the same so I guess I’ve sort of. . . I dunno, adjusted to it?” he laughed sardonically before sighing. “I’ve gotten to the point where I can normally sleep through it now, which is nice.” 

_God, how pathetic I must sound_ , he thought to himself with disgust as he took a sip of his drink quickly. He glanced at Cas to see the Alpha was deep in thought once more, nursing his cocoa silently. 

“Would you mind if I asked what the dream is about?” he asked hesitantly and damn him if the softness of the Alpha’s voice didn’t melt Dean in ways he didn’t know was possible. Dean licked his lips and thought about it before giving a slight shake of his head. He didn’t want to weird Cas out or seem more pathetic to the Alpha than he already felt he did.

“Maybe another time. Right now I just sort of want to not think about it, if that’s alright.” he gave a shy smile to Cas. The Alpha seemed to understand how Dean was truly feeling though as he slowly reached out and put his hand on Dean’s wrist tenderly. 

“Of course,” he said as he gave Dean a knowing look. “If you ever change your mind, you know where I am.” he added before pulling his hand back. Dean ignored the pang of sadness that hit his chest at the loss of contact. He glanced out the window for a moment before finishing his cup of cocoa, desperately wanting to change the subject.

“So do you have any plans for today?” Dean asked curiously, hoping Cas would take the bait and drop the subject. Cas, once again, seemed to understand Dean’s intentions and thankfully, he answered. 

“Actually, that’s why I’m here.” Cas stated matter-of-factly. He glanced up at Dean and a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he looked down at his mug. “I was going to ask you the same thing.”  
  
Dean felt his heart skip a beat at those words, followed by a rush of confusion. Partially because why would Cas care about his plans, and partially because why did the thought of Cas wanting to hang out with him fill his belly with butterflies? “Um, no, not really. . . Why?” he quirked an eyebrow at the Alpha.  
  
Something seemed to light up behind Cas’ blue irises as his face broke out into a full on grin. “I want you to meet me at my cabin in about thirty minutes if that’s okay with you? I’m sure Jody wouldn’t mind watching Claire. I just,” Dean watched as Cas’ pearly whites bit into the pink flesh of his lower lip as his eyes shifted to the left. “I want to show you something. Consider it me making it up to you, for leaving without any explanation.” Cas tilted his head as his lips closed to shift into a warm smile as he sat up a little straighter. Dean glanced him over for a moment, debating it.

He wasn’t sure what Cas had planned, but he could feel how the mood shifted and damn him, Cas’ happy mood was extremely contagious. “Alright, I think that can be arranged.” Dean gave a shy smile and holy fuck, there was Cas’ shit-eating grin again. Dean had never seen this side of the Alpha before; less serious and less grim, more boyish and definitely more care free. Cas stood and Dean followed suit, walking with the Alpha as he headed towards the door.

“Good. I’ll see you in thirty minutes then. By the way, I highly suggest you wear something warm.” Cas added quickly and then left without another word. 

It was hard not to notice that as he walked away, he seemed a lot more cheerful than he did when he had arrived.

  


x

Dean looked down at his watch before glancing up at the door that belonged to Castiel’s cabin. He made sure to double up on pants and wore the thickest sweater he owned. It was still a little nippy, but tolerable. Dean still couldn’t quite figure out what Cas had planned, but regardless, he walked over to the door and knocked on it with his knuckles a few times. After about ten seconds, the door opened and Dean’s eyes met chocolate brown ones. The scent of mint mixed with pine wafted through the air as the Beta looked him up and down subtly. “Hey, Billie.” Dean offered her a smile.  
  
Billie nodded towards him before opening the door wider so he could walk in. Dean scanned the room before seeing Cas appear through a door frame with a leather bag in hand. He looked at Dean and smiled, glancing over him before approving. “I think that’s appropriate attire for where we’re headed.” he said as he walked over and stood in front of Dean. “Would you mind carrying this? It’s going to be hard for me since I’ll be carrying you.”  
  
Dean’s eyebrows shot up at that and he tried to pretend the blush on his cheeks wasn’t there as he gave a curt nod. “O-Of course.” he breathed as he grabbed the bag and shrugged it on over his shoulders. He followed Cas outside before stopping when he saw the Alpha take his shirt off. “Cas, don’t you think it’s, uh, a little _too_ cold to be shirt- oh, okay,” Dean said as he quickly turned his head away when he noticed Cas was stripping his pants off too. He heard a loud pop noise followed by a few cracks and when he looked back to where Cas was, he saw a large black wolf in his place. 

Dean’s eyes widened as he took in the beautiful creature. He was as tall as Dean remembered him the first night they met, if not a little taller. His fur was fuzzy and fluffy and his blue eyes stood out even more than they normally do on his human face. Dean slowly approached him and almost screamed when the wolf moved suddenly, though it was only to lie down on his belly. He was definitely big, his front paws being about the size of Dean’s bicep. He stared with fascination at how large Cas’ snout was before slowly reaching out to touch the tips of the Alpha’s ears. He had never seen a wolf so large before, but then again, he really didn’t get out much.

At that thought, that’s when reality sunk in. Dean was about to go with the Alpha, whom he had only known for a month-- two at most-- and he was going to be completely alone. A small ball of fear filled his chest at the thought and for the first time, Dean was hesitant on going with the Alpha. Sure, they had been alone many times before, but that was at the camp. With other people around them almost constantly, or at least always within hearing distance. This time, Dean wasn’t positive if they would be on camp grounds, let alone within hearing distance of anyone who could save him if it came down to it. What if Cas had been displaying a facade these past months, just to get Dean to trust him so that his guard would be down? What if he truly _was_ like Alastair, except maybe even crueler because he really let Dean believe that he was safe? What if he-

Dean felt something warm and wet glide against his palm and he looked back to see the tip of Cas’ tongue disappear into his snout. He swallowed thickly as he let out a deep breath, staring into those deep blue eyes, and felt his fear subside slowly. The wolf tilted his head, his ears flattening slightly as Cas sniffed his wrist a few times before slowly maneuvering Dean’s hand up so that it was placed between his ears. Dean felt warmth radiate against his palm and a calming feeling rushing over his body. He sighed once more as the last little ball of anxiety and fear melted away, leaving only the feeling of uncertainty and slight excitement in his belly. He didn’t know why, but he had a feeling deep in his gut that told him he could trust Cas. He just had to remind himself of that. The Alpha hadn’t done anything to hurt him so far, except for maybe disappear on him, but he came back and he apologized. Plus, they were doing this to make up for that. 

He let his hand glide down Cas’ snout slowly before he exhaled and then gave him a small smile. “Sorry. . . Just a little anxious, I guess.”

Cas looked at Dean before looking over to Billie and Dean watched them stare at each other for a moment before Billie nodded and then disappeared. After a few seconds, a wolf came out of the cabin, causing Dean to jump slightly. It was a lot smaller than Cas was, maybe standing at three feet tall instead of Cas’ impressive five, and its fur was a chocolate brown. The smell of pine and mint wafted through the air and Dean realized that it was Billie. His brows furrowed in confusion as the wolf ran past them and down the walkway, out of sight. A few seconds later, a loud howl could be heard, causing birds to fly out from the trees. Dean glanced at Cas, who simply stayed in his position as he watched the end of the trail where Billie had disappeared.

About a minute later, Billie returned with a wolf that looked extremely familiar. It had gray and white hair with a splash of orange covering its’ neck and ears. The scent of vanilla and cinnamon filled the air and relief flooded through Dean as he recognized the wolf as Charlie. He watched them trot over and Charlie ran over to him and nuzzled his leg, her tail wagging happily as her tongue stuck out on the side. He rubbed the spot on top of her head before scratching her ears for a few seconds, smiling fondly at her. She nuzzled his arm before backing up and sitting down, looking over at Cas. It was fascinating for Dean to watch them mutely interact with each other for a couple of moments, Cas looking back and forth between both of them. The Alpha finally huffed out of his snout, a white cloud appearing, and the two Betas nodded curtly before glancing at Dean.

He stared at all three dogs, feeling absolutely lost. Cas seemed to take pity on him because he slowly moved over and tucked his head under Dean’s hand. Dean let his thumb rub over the Alpha’s ear before a sharp pain ran through his brain. A scream escaped him as he fell to his knees, his hands covering his ears as he closed his eyes tightly. He stayed like that for a few moments before opening his eyes and blinking rapidly as he looked around him. Cas was several feet away, his eyes big as he laid low to the ground, his ears flat. Dean looked over to his left and he realized that Charlie was touching his arm tenderly, crouching next to him in her human form.

“Hey, Dean,” she spoke softly. “It’s okay, you’re okay.” she murmured as she rubbed his back soothingly. He lowered his hands slowly and blinked a few more times before looking at her.

“What the fuck happened?” he breathed, not affected at all by the Beta’s nudity. Charlie looked at Cas before looking back at Dean. 

“Cas was trying to communicate with you but he came on a little too strong. He was just trying to tell you that Billie and I will follow you two. He can sense your discomfort and your anxiety and he wants to make this as easy for you as possible,” she said softly as she gave his arm a squeeze. “He wasn’t trying to hurt you, although now he feels extremely bad.” she said apologetically. Dean rubbed his temple before slowly standing. 

“It’s okay,” he nodded slowly as he tried to make eye contact with Cas. The Alpha avoided his gaze but Dean made his way over to the wolf slowly. The Alpha growled quietly when Dean raised his hand to touch him, his blue eyes finally connecting with Dean’s. Surprisingly, the growl didn’t scare him nor did it phase him. “Cas,” he said calmly, holding his hand out still, until the Alpha finally caved and put his snout under Dean’s palm. “It’s okay. I just. . . wasn’t expecting it. That’s all.” Dean said, raising his hand and petting the top of Cas’ head before exhaling slowly. “And thank you.” he added quickly. “For bringing Charlie and Billie along. It means a lot to me.”

That seemed to put the Alpha in a somewhat better mood as his ears slowly perked up some. He licked Dean’s wrist tenderly before sitting down on his belly again. Dean tilted his head in confusion and turned around to ask Charlie what Cas wanted, but the Beta was already back in her wolf form. Dean looked back at Cas and the Alpha tossed his head to the side. Now _that_ , Dean understood.

_Get on_.

Dean watched him for a moment, worried that he’d somehow hurt the Alpha, but decided not to second guess it. He ignored the blush that was rising up his neck as he not-so-gracefully straddled the Alpha’s back. A yelp escaped him against his will when the Alpha stood up and Dean found his feet were dangling off the ground. He gripped the Alpha’s fur tightly as he clung for dear life, obviously not used to this. He noticed the Alpha’s body was shaking and it took him exactly one second to realize the wolf was actually _laughing_ at him. 

“Bite me, Cas.” Dean grumbled with slight annoyance before shifting around a little bit so that he could sit comfortably. He wrapped his arms around Cas’ neck and looked over at Billie and Charlie who were watching them. Charlie’s eyes were filled with delight while Billie’s were filled with unamusement. Castiel snuffed and suddenly they were moving again and that was _definitely_ not a squeak that escaped Dean as they started walking to wherever Cas was planning for them to go.  
  
_Stupid Alpha and his stupid surprises_ , Dean thought to himself with amusement and fondness, not a hint of annoyance to be found.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a side note: please, give me some slack as it's been a few years since I've written smut, so it probably isn't my best.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _I had to do that. At least once._  
>  ― Suzanne Collins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is a rather short chapter. I'm studying/prepping for my GED pre-test tomorrow. I'll try my best to pump out a chapter within the next week after this, but I hope that the events in this chapter make up for it's brevity <3 
> 
> Once again, a HUGE shout out to my Beta Jeffy <3 Enjoy reading, lovelies! Thank you for such amazing and supportive comments! I love reading them :') xx
> 
> [TW: a smidge of self loathing]

The walk to where Cas planned to take Dean was a little harder than he had originally expected. He wasn’t quite sure why, but with the Omega on his back, it was like his guard was up more than normal. He didn’t communicate much with Charlie or Billie except for the occasional moment where he would tell them to stop and they would all snuff the air out. Every once and awhile, he could feel Charlie poke at his mind, but he kept the wall up high. It totally didn’t have to do with the fact that he could feel Dean’s hand resting between his shoulder blades as they all trotted along and the feeling set his thoughts on fire. He knew if they weren’t out in the open and he wasn’t on such high alert, he wouldn’t be able to focus on anything else than besides the tender touch. 

He also didn’t want anyone else to know what his plan was; at least not yet. Maybe after he told Dean, after he opened up to him, he’d be willing to share. However, for now, that information was extremely confidential. He couldn’t deny that it was a spur of the moment decision, but he  _ also _ couldn’t deny that Dean deserved to know the truth. Or at least, part of the truth. Depending on how that went would depend on if he decided to continue the whole honesty thing. Although was it really a lie if Dean didn’t even know about everything in the first place? Cas liked to think it wasn’t, but deep down in his gut, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to keep all his secrets forever.

Cas would never admit it out loud, but he knew that there was a small part of him that was being selfish. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that this was the first selfish act he had ever committed. He tried to justify it by telling himself that he was protecting Dean but in reality, he knew he was just scared. Petrified, really, because he knew that once Dean found out the whole truth, he would never want to see Cas again.    
  
And Cas wasn’t quite ready for that yet. So yeah, he was being a  _ little _ selfish by only being slightly honest with Dean.

He felt a tug on his ear and he tilted his head so that he could see Dean in his peripheral vision while still focusing on where he was walking. Dean gave him a shy smile. “You with me?”

Cas looked up at him for a few moments before giving a curt huff from his snout, his head whipping back around as he looked for visual aid to show that they had arrived. Sure enough, within another five minutes, Cas caught a faint scent that wafted through the air. It smelled of soft lavender with a vibrant kick of the ocean air. It smelled of his home.

His _true_ home, that is.

He heard Dean’s gasp as the Omega and the three wolves walked towards the old cabin that was tucked between a small group of clustered trees. It was all covered in snow, the hedges as tall as the roof. The stone pathway was covered in ice, though that didn’t phase the Alpha at all. He took in the small building’s beauty; it had to have been at least two years since he had been there. The porch was covered in dusty snow, along with the small rose bushes in front of it. Cas turned his head to look out at the large pond to the right of him and Dean. It was frozen over but that didn’t take away from the beautiful view it gave.

Cas stared for a few more moments before he realized that Dean was shivering. He flattened his ears before looking over at Billie.  _ Go inside and do a once over to make sure no intruders have been here. After that, start a fire quickly in the firepit. Dean is freezing. _

_He speaks_. Billie looked at him sarcastically before shifting and quickly walking inside. Lights flickered on and after a few moments, Cas could smell the smoke before he saw it come out of the chimney. He turned to Charlie and snuffed. 

_ Do a perimeter check while I take Dean inside. I want you and Billie to track circles around the cabin throughout the night please _ .

Charlie gave a curt nod before turning around and disappearing behind the bushes. Billie came out and within seconds, was in her wolf form once more. Cas could tell Charlie already gave Billie the memo as the chocolate wolf ran the opposite way of Charlie. Cas walked up the steps, laying down on his belly awkwardly to give Dean the chance to hop off. The Omega seemed to happily oblige as he got off and carefully made his way inside. Cas quickly shifted forms before following, grabbing the bag from Dean and swiftly getting dressed.

It was roomier on the inside, the bottom floor having a small living room/kitchen with a fireplace and a large couch in front of it. About six feet from the couch was a set of five stairs that led up to a medium sized platform resting above the kitchen area. There was a wooden railing around the edges, a large mattress with three wool comforters on it resting in the center. He looked at Dean, a fond smile spreading across his lips at the Omega’s reaction.

“Holy shit, Cas, this is. . . amazing,” he breathed the last word out as he took in the cabin’s rustic beauty. Cas grinned and he looked at Dean before nodding towards the fire.

“Sit. You’re probably extremely cold from the travel. I’ll make us some hot cocoa.”

x

Cas walked over to Dean and he handed him a cup of warm cocoa. Dean took it gratefully as he sat down in front of the fire, his legs still slightly wet from their travel. That was the only downside of how they got to the cabin. Cas’ fur kept him- and to a certain extent, Dean as well- warm. However, it didn’t cover all the snow they had to walk through to get there. He watched as the Alpha sat down next to him and tried not to stare at him for a long period of time before turning and looking back at the fire. He slowly sipped from the red mug and a hum of appreciation escaped him as he closed his eyes. “Holy shit, Cas. This is delicious,” Dean praised as he looked at the velvety smooth liquid that was swirling around in his cup.

The Alpha smiled fondly at him before slightly pursing his lips as he looked down at his own drink. “Dean,” he said softly, causing Dean to glance up at him. He was surprised to see those piercing blue orbs were already staring back at him. He tried to ignore the dryness that formed in his mouth at the sudden shift in Cas’ voice. He quirked an eyebrow at him and Cas inhaled deeply before sharply exhaling. He seemed. . .  _ nervous _ ? Dean wasn’t quite sure. “I haven’t been. . . completely, er, honest with you.” he said after a few moments. 

Dean looked at him and he had no idea why, but his stomach instantly dropped. What did the Alpha mean by that? Not completely honest with him? Dean stared at him, his eyes getting bigger as he tried not to panic. “H-How so?” Dean managed to breathe out and Cas seemed to know exactly where his mind went.

“No, not about  _ that _ ,” he said quickly, his body spinning so he was fully facing Dean now. Dean tried to remind himself that Charlie and Billie were directly outside and he had a gut feeling Charlie wouldn’t let anything bad happen to him so he didn’t flinch when the Alpha tenderly grabbed his free hand. “I was talking about. . . why I disappeared that day.” Cas said as he squeezed the Omega’s hand. Dean set his mug down before shifting his own body so that his knees were touching Cas’. The fire illuminated Cas’ features so beautifully, his stubble standing out under the golden light and he had to fight the urge to touch it.

“Oh,” he exhaled deeply, letting his body relax minutely. He was even more thankful that Cas didn’t show any sign of hurt at the fact that Dean’s mind went there in the first place. “Okay, yeah.” he cleared his throat as he sat up a little straighter and took a calming breath. “So what’s the real reason you left?”   
  
Cas stared at Dean for a few moments, his brows furrowed slightly as he simply pursed his lips closed once more. He looked at the fire for a few moments before licking his lower lip and damn him, Dean watched every second that Cas’ tongue was out. Dean gave his hand a soft squeeze and Cas instantly looked at him. In that moment, Dean could have sworn the Alpha was blushing. He reached up to touch his neck with his free hand and rub it a few moments before he finally decided to speak.

“As Alpha of our safe camp,” he started before hesitating for a moment. “I’ve come across. . . many, _many_ Omega scents. Dozens upon dozens, actually,” he said as his eyebrows lifted slightly. He looked down and Dean couldn’t help but find this bashful and shy side of the Alpha endearing. He looked up at Dean and his gaze was extremely intense. “And over the past forty years, never have I ever been as affected by a scent as I have with yours. . .” he said the last word softly, almost mutely. Dean’s eyebrows shot up against his will as Cas’ words slowly set in. His scent affected Cas. _His_ _scent affected Cas_. Dean didn’t understand why that made butterflies slowly fill his stomach. “Your scent threw me into a rut.” he finished with a hesitant look.

“Oh,” Dean said softly as he stared down at their joined hands. He was surprised because the first thing he expected to feel was fear or to feel anxiety, but as he muddled through his emotions, he realized something. The fear and anxiety were still there, but they were quiet. In fact, if Dean hadn’t dug so deep into his head, he may not have heard them at all. The only things he could really feel were excitement, slight apprehension, and most importantly of all; happiness. He felt a gentle tap on his wrist and it brought him back to the present once more. “Sorry.” he mumbled with slight embarrassment. 

The Alpha exhaled deeply and let Dean’s hand go quickly. “I don’t want you thinking that I’m going to take advantage of you in any way. That’s why I’ve been distancing myself if I’m being honest.” Cas said as he looked over at the fire. “I don’t expect anything from you and I never have. I just wasn’t sure how to tell you that without scaring you.” he said quietly and Dean studied him for a moment. That’s when it clicked in his mind; Cas was just as stuck in his own mind as Dean was in his. The Omega couldn’t explain why, but it made his chest fill with warmth. They fell into silence as Dean processed everything in his head, their soft breaths and the crackle of the fire being the only sounds disturbing the quiet.

Sure it was scary. . . terrifying, really. However, it also sent a thrill up Dean’s spine at the thought that it wasn’t just him. He wasn’t the only one affected by the other person’s smell. He decided not to analyze the fact that that made him feel a small bubble of pleasure in his chest, and instead opted to focus on the flames as well. He licked his lower lip slowly and glanced up at Cas. The Alpha that was nothing but kind and gentle towards him for the past couple of months. The Alpha who danced with him on the evening of Halloween, who let him sleep in his bed and didn’t touch him even though his scent affected him as deeply as Cas was insinuating it did. Dean felt a lump form in his throat as another wave of emotions hit him. This greek god of an Alpha was somehow interested in  _ him _ of all Omegas. He was about to speak when Cas broke the silence first. 

“If you want to go back to the campgrounds, you can.” Cas said softly as he stood up and walked over to the window. Dean’s brows furrowed at the sudden cold shoulder and he stood seconds after Cas walked away. He opened his mouth to say something when Cas cut him off again. “I won’t follow but I can assure you these woods are safe to travel through at night. Or else I can leave and you stay here.” he paused for a moment. “That would probably be better for you since you don’t have the fur that I do. I could make it back and in the morning Billie and Charlie can go back with you.”   
  
“Cas,” Dean spoke softly but the Alpha shook his head. 

“Don’t worry, I know. I’m slightly disgusted with myself too, I’m sorry that I made you uncomfortable-”

“Cas,” he said again, a little firmer this time. 

“Billie and Charlie can guard you for the night. I promise I can be out of your hair, just give me five minutes and I’ll-”   
  
“ _ Cas _ !” Dean groaned and that seemed to catch his attention. Dean realized the dryness decided to make an appearance once more as he repeated the words over in his head for a split second. He exhaled deeply and his eyes closed as his fists balled up. He opened his mouth again and when his eyes opened, they were filled with determination. “Kiss me.”   
  
Castiel’s lips parted and his eyes almost bugged out of his head. Dean would have laughed if the circumstances were different. The Alpha tucked his hands under his armpits as he bit his lip, studying the Omega’s posture. “Dean, please, I don’t want you to feel pressured-” he started softly before Dean held his hand up.

“Cas, I swear to Moon and Sun, if you don’t come over here and kiss me, I will throw you into the snow.” he said a little firmer as he stared the Alpha down. That seemed to flick a switch inside him and his posture changed instantly. He puffed his chest out, maintaining eye contact as he leisurely made his way to Dean until they were just inches apart. His scent invaded Dean’s senses as he stood near him, the smell of honey and the forest after a rainstorm causing him to feel slightly dizzy. Even though they were about the same height, in this moment Cas had never seemed taller. The Alpha tucked his finger under Dean’s chin to tilt it up as he searched the Omega’s eyes intensely. 

“Are you sure?” he just barely whispered and Dean knew that Cas was giving him one last chance to back out. If he was being honest, he wasn’t sure. However, he wasn’t sure about anything else in his life anymore either. All he knew was that he was tired of always focusing on the past and for once, he wanted to try his hardest to focus on the present, then and there. Dean stared at his soft pink lips and he swallowed thickly before answering by closing the small distance that was left between them. 

The first thing that crossed his mind was  _ holy shit _ , he was actually doing it. He and Cas were kissing; he was kissing an Alpha by choice for the first time in his life. And he was enjoying every fucking second. The second thing that crossed his mind was the fact that Cas’ lips were pressed firmly against his own and holy  _ shit _ were they soft and dominant and warm and inviting and everything Dean could have hoped for. His hand slowly slid up on it’s own, wrapping around Cas’ neck as his nudged their noses together. He felt Castiel’s arm snake around his waist and rest on his lower back while the Alpha’s free hand raised up to Dean’s cheek, the pad of his thumb skimming the edge of his cheekbone. The action finally caused Dean’s eyes to flutter closed. Now  _ that _ was a whole different experience.

The moment his eyes closed, the image of Alastair threatened to come to him, but Dean forcefully pushed it away as he gripped Cas’ shirt tightly to keep himself grounded in the present. He let Alastair ruin many things in his life, let him take whatever what he wanted from Dean. He was  _ not _ going to let that bastard take this from him too. Once he knew for sure he was grounded, he let himself really bask in the feeling of how warm Cas’ lips were. How much heat and  _ warmth _ his body radiated onto Dean’s own. They were slightly chapped sure, but the mixed feeling of his chapped lips and the stubble on his jaw just about threw Dean over the edge. He felt Cas start to pull away and their lips parted for just a moment until Dean quickly chased after the Alpha’s lips with his own.    
  
A soft noise escaped Cas as his eyebrows shot up but he made no move in pushing Dean away. He didn’t kiss back as feverly as he did the first time, as if letting Dean know that  _ he _ was the one in control at that moment. Dean felt relief radiate off of him and he let his hands slide down slowly to rest on Castiel’s biceps, their lips slotting together as if Dean had finally found the missing piece to the puzzle that was his life. After a few more seconds of him kissing Cas, he finally had to pull away so that he could breathe. He looked at Cas for a moment before meekly looking down at the floor, a blush raising up his neck and to his cheek. The Alpha’s hand raised up slowly and cupped the curve of his jaw, his thumb slowly caressing Dean’s lower lip. 

“Are you alright, Omega?” he asked softly and Dean couldn’t help but feel a curl of desire flutter against his belly at how low Castiel’s voice had gotten. He peeked up at Cas and felt no shame in staring directly at those soft pink lips that were becoming a little puffier than usual, no doubt from the kisses he had stolen earlier. 

Dean looked down at his wrist and he swallowed thickly, tracing the lines of Castiel’s tattoo mentally, as he thought about it. Was he okay? He tried to run through all the emotions running in his brain but he couldn’t sense one negative feeling in his body. He slowly looked up at Cas and a shy smile graced his lips. “I think so.” he whispered back softly and holy  _ fuck _ , he had never heard himself sound so breathless before in his entire life. 

Not that he minded.


End file.
